


Secret Kiss

by AddedOC



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Slice of Life, Superheroes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-15
Updated: 2017-11-01
Packaged: 2018-12-30 05:20:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 53,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12101616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AddedOC/pseuds/AddedOC
Summary: "Sorry for making you rush over but I think that there really is something big going on with Mari, and well she seemed to be nearly herself when she was talking to you this morning and I thought maybe with you nearby she may be herself enough to talk to me." She spoke quickly as she grabbed him by the arm and yanked his body back to where she had come from. (Rated M for later)





	1. Chapter 1

How long had it been since she sat down at the small round table and looked at the thick folder that rested in the center of it? How many seconds, minutes, hours had passed since her parents had told her that they needed to talk? How many times had the ticking of their kitchen clock rung out in the otherwise dead silence of the room? She couldn't tell how long it had been since her father uttered the earth shattering words that kept repeating over and over in her mind like a broken record or an old cd that continuously skipped. Just two words were all it took to shatter her world around her;

_Bankruptcy_

_Foreclosure_

Business had not been going well for her family and she had been too busy (fighting Akumas), or distracted (obsessing over a certain blonde boy) to notice this fact. Her father explained that a new bakery and café had opened less than a block away from them nearly three months before and they simply could not compete with the large verity and low prices of the new establishment. On top of this, as if to add insult to injury, the place was open 24/7. She knew but did not want to believe that they had lost their bakery, their HOME, due to this fact.

"Where," her voice cracked as she finally found the strength to speak, "w-where are we going to go?"

"For now we are going to stay here for the week, pack our things and move them to storage. After that your father and I have decided to stay in a hotel until we can find a new place. I have already put my application in a few places around the neighborhood." Her mother stated in a smooth comforting voice as she covered her hand with her own, "Mari we will be okay, everything will work out. We just need to tough it out through the hard times. Alright baby." She tried and failed to stop her bottom lip from quivering as she gave her mother a soft nod in response.

"I-I think I should go lay down." She stated softly as she stood and looked away from her parents sad faces.

"Of course dear, you should rest." Her father smiled sadly as he watched her shuffle slowly up the stairs and open the trapdoor that lead up into her room.

Once she was inside the sting of tears caused her to shut her eyes tightly she felt sick to her stomach as flashes of hot and cold rocked her body. The world was spinning around her as she stumbled forward to land face down on her small day bed and let out a small strangled cry. A small red and black blue flew out of her purse and rushed to her cheek when this happened, causing her to turn her face towards the tiny Kwami and pinch her eyebrows together as she attempted to hold back the tears that spilled from her eyes.

"Are you okay?" Tikis small voice was enough to release the torrents of emotions running through her. They had to leave their home, the place where she grew up and the place that she felt safest in the world. It was all her fault, if she had just paid a bit more attention to what was going on here rather than the rest of Paris she would have realized and she could have helped out in even a small way. Who knows maybe she could have helped her parents keep their small bakery up and running.

"You need to stop beating yourself up over this. It's not your fault okay?" The tiny voice of her small red and black dotted friend caused her to open her eyes and look down at the little god who was currently sitting on her crossed arms.

"I should have paid better attention. I should have helped out around here." She stated in a horse voice that cracked after every few words, clearly she was nowhere near done with her crying session.

Tiki didn't know how to respond to her clearly hurting charge. No scenario that popped into her mind seemed to end right for her. She could tell her it wasn't her fault but she knew the Blackett wouldn't listen to that. She could suggest helpful ways she could go about packing for her parents but that seemed too cold hearted and nothing like what the young girl needed in that moment.

"I-" the audible hiccup following the word caused the small red Kwamis eyes to lower in pain for her dear charges suffering, "I n-need to sleep. It's, it's just a bad dream." With that Marinette Dupain-Chang stumbled her way across the room and up the short flight of stairs to land face down on her bed. It wasn't long until her soft sobs died away and she gave in to inevitable sleep.

* * *

School, it seemed so unimportant considering what she had discovered the night before but now as she stood outside the large gates that lead to her place of learning an overwhelming sense of fear and dread filled her body. What if someone found out that her family was being forced from their home? Chloe would use it as another way to torture her and her friends would pity her so much that she wouldn't be able to stand looking them in the eye. She clutched her purses strap in one hand as she closed her eyes and took in a steadying breath.

"Hey Marinette." She jumped as a warm hand landed gently on her shoulder and turned with wide shocked eyes to see a blonde haired green eyed and slightly taken aback model staring at her with concern swimming around his emerald depths, "hey, are you okay?" He asked as he furrowed his brow.

"A-A-Adrien." She stammered as she shuffled backwards to put some distance between them before he could feel the heat of the feverish blush that was threatening her cheeks, "I-I'm fine, just f-fine. Not as fine as you are, I-I mean you don't need to b-be told you're fine. I mean ah," she hid her face in her hands before she could dig herself any deeper into the pit of embarrassing despair she could feel herself getting lost in.

"Mari! Hey!" She turned to see her savior in the form of a brunette dark skinned girl in round rimmed glasses wearing a large smile that stretched across her face, "hey girl guess what!" She commanded as she draped one arm across Marinettes shoulders and turned her away from Adrien who was simply staring at them in a dumbfounded manner.

"What's up?" Mari croaked as she glanced over her shoulder to see the boy of her dreams waving her best friends boyfriend over to greet him. She was ushered a bit further away from him as her friend pulled out two pieces of laminated paper that was decorated with a red background and black cat paw prints to dot them. In bold white letters she could easily read:

Meet Ladybug and Chat Noir live in person at the annual Mayoral Ball!

She almost groaned outwardly at this. The last thing on her mind was the silly promise she had made to the mayor and Chat the last time they had rescued him from an Akuma attack. She knew without the taller girl saying anything that she was being invited to help out with her Ladyblog, a website that had become delicates to her other persona over the last three years.

"So?" Alya wasn't one to wait patiently for very long for an answer, especially about something like this.

"Are you taking Nino?" She asked in a soft voice as she looked down at her feet rather than stare at the tickets any longer.

"Well yeah, but," with that Alya pulled two more tickets from her back pocket and her smiled broadened even more, "I was hoping to help you make it a double date thing." As she spoke she. It her eyes towards the blonde that Marinette was trying so hard to avoid look at.

"I-" she glanced at him for only a second before looking down at her feet once again. She really didn't want to tell anyone about her newfound predicament but Alya was her closest and most trusted friend. She had always been someone she could trust with her civilian issues before, and she really needed a good excuse to get out of it this time, "I have to talk to you about something very important but not here where anyone can hear us. Meet me at the park after school okay?" She whispered quickly as she uses red the taller girl towards their classroom.

* * *

The rest of the day dragged by as slow as margarine on a cool tabletop. She couldn't focus on the lesson that their teacher drowned on and on about and she couldn't bring herself to look at anyone in the room or even to distract herself with sketching as she usually did. To all of her friends she looked like a hollow shell of the usually cheerful girl they knew . To herself she felt as if she was apart from her body; watching herself shamble around like a zombie but powerless to stop it. She barely even noticed when Adrien gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder as he moved past her after the last bell of the day sounded. This fact caused her best friend to be practically shaking with worry as she stepped up to the park bench where Marinette sat mindlessly chewing on a scone and watching the clouds drifting across the sky.

She quickly pulled out her phone and twirled the ladybug charm around her finger nervously as she pulled up her text screen and began to type quickly:

**Alya (4:37pm):** _you model boy I really need a favor from you man._

She sent the text quickly as she studied Marinette from afar, the poor girl had yet to take her eyes off the sky, or notice her best friend for that matter. She nearly didn't notice her phone buzzing in her hands as she studied the girl with a sad frown pasted to her lips.

 **A-dog (4:39pm):**   _what's up? Need help with Nino? Cause if so I have to take his side. Bro honor._

She smirked at the message and shook her head.

**Alya (4:40pm):** _not a Nino thing thank you very much. I got a little lost kitten here that could use some cheering up._

It didn't take long for him to answer.

 **A-dog (4:41pm):**   _Lost kitten? What are you talking about?_

She was ready for this response and snapped a quick picture of her friend before returning to her text.

 **Alya (4:41pm):**  [click to load image attachment]  _doesn't it just look pitiful? Come down to the park asap and help me get her back to normal._

Once again his text was almost instantaneous.

 **A-dog (4:42pm):**   _I'm on my way._

She couldn't help the smirk that danced across her lips at his reply. The boy was obviously obsessed with her dear sweet Mari in one way or another and all he needed was a tiny little nudge to see that he was absolutely head over heels for the shy and caring future designer.

"Maricakes!" She called out cheerily as she tucked her phone in her pocket and practically skipped over to the petite girl on the bench.

Marinette looked up at Alya just in time for the girl to flop down on the bench and break off a piece of the scone that she had been taking the smallest bites of as she thought over the recent events in her life. She gave the dark skinned girl a half hearted smile as she received an energetic one in return.

"Hi Alya." She sighed as she rested the scone on the napkin in her lap and tore at the nibbled on corner with her fingers, "I'm glad you made it. I really needed to talk to someone about this." She stated with her head down, focusing on ripping the pastry to shreds.

"So what's the big important news Hun, whatever it is had you fazed out all day."Alya pressured her as she chewed on her part of it. Marinette looked back up at the sky and closed her eyes as she thought of how to put her troubles into words. Alya was a budding reporter at heart but she had also known her dear friend long enough to know that she couldn't push her into saying anything if she wasn't ready. It was no surprise to the brunette that her friend was still quiet as a stone when she caught sight of Adrien's signature blonde locks in a crowd that was positioned on the opposite side of the park from them.

"You keep thinking it over, I'll be right back." She said calmly as she stood and made her way as steadily as she could across the wide expanse of park that separated them. Mari for her part didn't respond or even open her eyes as her friend moved away from her, she nearly thought that the poor girl was sleeping off whatever had her looking so heartbroken.

"Sorry for making you rush over but I think that there really is something big going on with Mari, and well she seemed to be nearly herself when she was talking to you this morning and I thought maybe with you nearby she may be herself enough to talk to me." She spoke quickly as she grabbed him by the arm and yanked his body back to where she had come from. She didn't even look to see the astonished look on his face as he was led like a dog on a leash towards the sad girl. He was equally shocked when she stopped behind a tree that was a good three meters from the girl and turned to look at him sternly.

"She doesn't want anyone to know what's going on so I'll try to get her talking. If she looks like she's about to break down I need you to step in and cheer her up." She stated in a very professional voice that had him standing stiffly as if she was folding him.

"Okay but," he scratched the back of his neck as he glanced around the tree to the one they were discussing, "do you even know what's wrong with her?"

"No but, I think it has something to do with her parents." Alya stated flatly.

"Why would you think that?" He asked as he lowered his hand.

"Well, see that scone that she's shredding? I took a bite of it and it's not one of theirs." She replied with a small shrug.

"And?" He asked as he raised his eyebrows.

"If you lived in a bakery where you could get them anytime you wanted would you go around buying some poor knockoff version of them?" Alya asked.

"I, I guess not." He returned her shrug with one of his own.

"Exactly." With that she left him there, hiding behind the tree as she skipped back over to Mari.

* * *

"Ready to talk?" Marinette looked up as Alya stood before her asking the question a bit too loudly for her taste. This was it, she had to tell her at some point so she may as well get it over with.

"I-" she began as her voice hitched, "I am going to be moving soon and I'm not sure where."

"What?" The question shocked her enough to knock her back into reality from the dark void she could feel herself slipping into.

"I- I mean my parents. A new bakery's opened nearby. They can't keep up with it and," she burst into tears then and covered her face with her hands. Alya must have moved around to hug her from behind because she could feel a warmth there as two arms wrapped around her, pinning her hands to her eyes as they did so.

"We are losing the house." She sobbed, "the bakery, we are losing everything."

"We will figure something out. Right Alya?" The voice that was so close to her ear that the breath that carried it warmed the back of her neck caused her body to stiffen like a stone. It was masculine yet sweet and carried with it a sense of profound sorrow that clearly came from hearing her words. It was a voice that she would instantly recognize no matter what.

It was Adrien.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have you ever heard of Mischievous Kiss? Or maybe Playful Kiss? Well I'm kinda drawing inspiration from them as well (they are practically the same thing other than their countries of origin so I am counting them as one) basically I plan on mixing both plots and adding a few things here or there for my own pleasure.
> 
> Please review and let me know what you think of it be it good or bad. Honestly I am very nervous about posting this just like I'm always nervous about posting new fandom based fics.
> 
> Much love to you all and I hope to hear from you soon;
> 
> Ad
> 
> Preview:
> 
> "Girl where have you been?" Alya demanded as she grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her gently to get her urgency across, "I haven't been able to sleep because I was so worried that my poor little Maribug had ended up under a bridge or something." With the word 'Maribug' echoing in her head the bespeckled girl wrapped her in a tight hug that caused her to feel as if her lungs were being crushed.
> 
> Did she know? No, she couldn't right? She was just running through a list of pet names and adding Mari to them… wasn't she? She didn't have long to think over the implications of if her dear friend had figured it out or not because another voice cut through her mind as she struggled to breathe.


	2. Chapter 2

Marinette stood still as a statue in front of the Agreste mansion. Her parents flanked her on both left and right while all around them rested boxes and suitcases that were packed full of all the precious memories from her old home. In her arms rested a very particular lockbox that held both her diary and precious Kwami inside of it. Beyond the gate, and giving her a very stern look, stood the human gorilla that her group of friends had come to know as Adrien's personal bodyguard and chauffeur. Just behind him stood Adrien himself, looking at her with an apology floating in the emerald green depths of his eyes.

It had all happened too fast for her to think; by the time that she and Alya made it back to her home (that was being taken away from her) her parents were crowded around the cordless phone to the bakery and talking excitedly into it. There was a quick explanation of his dad hiring her dad as a live in specialty pastry chief and a bit of confusion as they rushed her into packing.

She found out later that it was Adrien who insisted on hiring him because the Dupain bakery was closing soon and he absolutely couldn't stand the thought of not being able to get the best pastries in all of Paris. She could still remember Alya stating that he must have mirrored Chloe when he spoke to his father after they all left the park that day. She had taken a few days off near the end of the school week to finish packing and to wrap her head around the fact that her family would be living in the huge mansion while her parents worked as the staff of her secret crushes father.

"Mr. Dupain, Mrs. Dupain-Chang." She was shocked out of her thoughts by the deep yet youthful voice of none other than Mr. Gabriel Agreste. She could feel her spine stiffen once again as the gate opened and a small team of movers that had stood behind them moved forward under the elder Agrestes orders. Her parents moved forward to discuss business with the elder blonde leaving her standing nervously on the sidewalk with the gorilla between her and the boy who had come through for her even though he shouldn't have felt the need to.

"Excuse me." He muttered to the much larger man as he stepped around him to stand before her with a friendly smile, "I know this is um, strange, but at least you'll have a ride to school everyday." He stated as he scratched the back of his neck and looked at the cracks in the sidewalk between their feet.

"Thanks, I do like to walk sometimes though." Her answer was a soft mumble, it was all she could muster as her mind rushed to play scenes of the two of them together alone, in close quarters like the back of his car. She didn't think her poor heart could take what her brain was showing her and clutched the lockbox closer to her chest as she closed her eyes and lowered her head.

"What?" She knew he didn't hear her clearly, she honestly didn't mean to say it out loud, but it was far too late to go back and change her actions now.

"Ah! Uh, n-nothing! I, I was just, to myself, talking. I didn't mean to, out loud that is. I'm sorry." She stumbled over her words as she suddenly found herself fumbling with the box in her hands. Just as the wood slipped through the tips of her fingers she felt a gentle warmth on the back of her hands that carried with it a soft pressure as he pushed the box back to a more stable position in her hands.

"Sorry…" he mumbled as he moved away from her, she stared down at the baby pink spots that decorated the white box in her hands as the heat in her face intensified.

"It's, it's okay." She mumbled softly as she looked back up at him through her bangs. He was looking up at the large house with a gentle smile on his face before turning his kind eyes towards her.

"Do you want to see your room? Nathalie worked hard on it." He offered as he motioned towards the house with a nod of his head.

"S-sure." She squeaked, it was all she could manage to get out through the swarming thoughts in her mind. Without another word shared between them she followed him towards the large house. The unknown future unfolding before her with each and every step that she took.

* * *

"Yo Maribaby!" She glanced around nervously as the voice of her best friend reached her ears. Another week of absences from school had the brunette worried about her, this much she knew from all the frantic text messages that she received from the girl while taking the week to settle in under the adults orders.

"Alya!" She exclaimed as she was wrapped in a tight embrace by the much taller female.

"Girl where have you been?" Alya demanded as she grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her gently to get her urgency across, "I haven't been able to sleep because I was so worried that my poor little Maribug had ended up under a bridge or something." With the word 'Maribug' echoing in her head the bespeckled girl wrapped her in a tight hug that caused her to feel as if her lungs were being crushed.

 _Did she know? No, she couldn't right? She was just running through a list of pet names and adding Mari to them… wasn't she?_  She didn't have long to think over the implications of if her dear friend had figured it out or not because another voice cut through her mind as she struggled to breathe.

"Actually, Marinette and her family have been-"

"Hired b-by his dad!" Marinette cut in quickly as the flash of sunlight off of honey blonde hair warned her of Chloe's approach, "s-s-so we moved to live closer to him, I mean them, I-I mean their house." She looked away from his shocked eyes and up at her friends kind yet worried expression, "I-its just been a hectic week but, bit I'm back now and everything's back to normal. R-right Adrien? She pleaded with him silently as she looked into his deep green eyes. She saw something there, the bright emerald color of them darkened as the realization of her struggling sunk in.

_She didn't want anyone to know that they were living together._

A stinging pain crossed through his chest as he looked down at the cracked cobblestone in front of the girls feet. She was embarrassed, too embarrassed to even tell Alya how he helped her out.

_Well, if it was such a problem for her then he wouldn't bother._

"Yeah." He sighed and scratched his neck, "whatever, class is starting soon." He grumbled as he walked away from her and looked down at his phone screen while he did so, anything to stop himself from looking back at the two girls who stood dumbfounded in his wake.

* * *

She knew she had messed up somehow when he slipped into the back seat of the sleek black car that always waited for him at the end of the school day. He hadn't spoken to or even glanced her way since their encounter with Alya that morning. There was a strange new look in his eyes, one she neither liked or recognized. That look was all she could think about on her long walk home and it only caused her chest to feel tighter and tighter. She had hurt him, somehow, and she couldn't figure out how to fix her mistake. Maybe if she just had some time alone to clear her head it would come to her. She just needed some fresh cookies, maybe a scone, and a good long night of sleep to calm her frazzled nerves. She just

Needed

Some

Sleep.

Her heart dropped as her eyes landed on the small but cozy building where she had spent most of her life. She had been so caught up in her own thoughts that her inner compass had naturally guided her feet towards home. There was only one problem; it wasn't the place that she had the right to call home anymore.

Her knees hit the pavement and her small purse that currently housed her dear Tikki was soon to follow. The small red Kwami rushed to nuzzle her cheek as the first of many sobs ripped through her chest and throat. She didn't know how long long her crying fit lasted, and she didn't care about the awkward stares that she received from the passers by as she sat on her knees before the only place that she had ever called home.

"Marinette," the tiny Kwamis voice finally cut through the sound of her inner turmoil, "Marinette, its starting to rain." Tikis red and black spotted head poked out from her purse as she spoke.

"I don't care." She grumbled as she turned to rest her back against the building and pulled her knees up to her chest to hide her face in them.

"You're going to get sick." Tikki offered.

"Don't care." Marinette pouted as she hugged her knees just that much tighter against her chest. The kwami went silent as the light around them faded and the icy cold raindrops seeped into her clothes and skin. She fell asleep there, at least for a little while, the tears that she had shed left her body weak and her heart broken. She had no way of knowing the terror that was running through the hearts and minds of those just across the city from her in that exact moment.

* * *

Adrien was pacing, he couldn't help it; whenever he was worried or stressed he paced. It just felt better to move around rather than sitting there and doing nothing at all. Before him, sitting on the couch and holding each other tightly, were the parents of the girl who was currently causing a sickening pain to rumble in the pit of his stomach. She hadn't come home; a storm was brewing and no one had seen her since the end of school, five hours ago.

"Adrien please sit down. I have already called the authorities and they are doing what they can. You will only stress out everyone the way you're acting right now." Nathalie, of course she would be the calm one during all of this.

"No." he nearly growled the word as he turned to glare at her.

"Adrien," she began.

"No!" He stated loudly as he stomped his foot roughly on the marble floor of the houses front room. When the shocked faces of the others in the room registered in his mind he let out a low defeated sigh, "I'm going to my room," he stated after a long pause, "if I can't help then, then I guess I'll go get some rest." He didn't wait for their response as he marched up the stairs and headed for his room. Once he was inside and safely away from any prying eyes he opened the side of his overshirt and allowed the small black, cat eared Kwami that had been stowed away in its own secret pocket to float out and drift lazily before him. The cat in the tiny god showed through as it stretched and made its way lazily towards the sock drawer that it had claimed as its bed without even looking back at him.

"And where do you think you're going?" Adrien asked as he stopped it by grabbing hold of one of its long whiskers.

"To bed, like you said you would." It practically groaned at him as it rolled its large green eyes, "you said yourself that there is nothing you can do, and come on I'm tired!"

"There's nothing Adrien can do sure, but Chat-Noir on the other hand…" the Kwami sighted in defeat as it noticed the spark behind the teens eyes.

"Oh boy, I don't think I'll get a cat nap anytime soon." It groaned.

"Nope," Adrien allowed a small chuckle to escape him before calling out, "Plagg, claws out!"

* * *

The first thing that she noticed when she woke up was the cool night air speeding past her face; this caused her to groan and turn her head away from it, ringing a rather large bell as she did so. The next feeling that registered in her mind was the warm leather draped skin that was pressed to her cheek and the soft silky strands of hair that would brush her arms as they moved.

_Wait_

_She was moving?_

Her eyes snapped open and were immediately locked onto by a pair of bright green orbs that shone like crystal in the faint light around them. They were surrounded in black leather that was perfectly molded to his skin, much like the leather encasing his body. Everything about him was black and gold, green and cream. The skin that was uncovered glowed in the night, not pale yet not exactly tan. That's when she noticed the playful smirk that danced across his lips and the gleam in his bright green crystal eyes.

_Chat-Noir._

"I see the princess is awake." He stated with his usual cocky tone, "I would complain that you didn't wait to be kissed but I'm feline that you aren't that kind of princess." He added as he expertly leapt over a wide alley way to land on the next roof and continue his sprint.

_Yup, Chat-Noir ladies and gentlemen._

Her face dropped from one of shocked confusion to one that showed just how annoyed she was in an instant. Even if she wasn't Ladybug right now he still could get under her skin with those damn cat puns.

"What's the matter, Chat got you're tongue?" He asked with a laugh following closely behind the question. That was the last straw; in battle was one thing, his puns could keep up both their spirits, but this was too much! She was wearing her civilian clothes for crusts sakes!

She was wearing her civilian clothes.

_Uh-oh._

"Let me go!" She demanded as she pushed away from him. If he was suited up that meant there was an akuma somewhere, and he was fighting it alone without Ladybug because she knew that she was Ladybug without the mask, "let me go! I'll get to safety and you can go fight the akuma! I'm sure that Ladybug is on her way already!" She was practically shouting at this point and was shocked into silence as he held her even closer to himself.

"There's been an akuma attack?" The tone of his voice was enough to tell her that even if there was one of Hawkmoths victims rampaging in the streets of Paris, he had no idea about it at all.

"Wait, I assumed… I mean you're all suited up and," she cut her sentence short as he glanced down at her with curiosity raising his eyebrows, "then why are you out and about and still  _carrying me_?" She demanded as her cheeks flushed red with sudden anger.

"Well, that's simple." He began as he came to a full stop and allowed her to stand. His hands shot up to stop hers when she tried to remove them from his neck however and she found her eyes locked with his once again.

"I'm listening." She stated softly, far softer than she should have but the thought crossed her mind far too late as her words were carried towards him on a puff of steam that dissipated between them. The atmosphere seemed to shift between the two, becoming something more, something that Marinette was scared to put her finger on just yet. He leaned forward and the heat in her cheeks intensified seven fold. Was he actually leaning in to kiss her? She knew Chat had a thing for her, well the other her, but not this her. She couldn't deal with this now!

"Adrien Agreste." His voice was followed by a warm breath that dusted her left ear, causing her to snap open her eyes that she hadn't realized she had closed.

"What?" She managed to squeak as he stepped away from her and extended his staff vertically, before crouching on its perfectly balanced length in a very Chat way.

"Adrien Agreste, he sent me to find you. Seems like some dark haired princess forgot her way back to her castle tonight." The Cheshire Cat smile that stretched across his face distracted her from the worry that filled his eyes. How would she react to him, well the other him, worrying about her enough to send a superhero after her in the dead of the night.

"Adrien sent you to find me?" She asked as she crossed her arms protectively around herself, "I'm sorry but I doubt that." Her head lowered slightly as she continued to speak, "I'm just trouble for him and I've just barged my way into his life, his home. He wouldn't even look at me in school and it's all because he's at his wits end with me. Do you know how frustration has that is? " she looked up as she asked the question and then softly added, "how would you feel if Ladybug did that to you?"

"That's different." He stated quickly. Her eyes widened as he spoke, but only for a moment before she shook her head and looked away from him.

"How is it different huh?" She asked as she stared down at her closed fists that shook before her where she had them clutched to the hem of her shirt, "because you love her?" She added with an angry snort. He couldn't help the chuckle that escaped him, she was kinda cute when she did that.

"Sooooo~" he somehow purred while he dragged out the 'o' sound and slid down easily on his staff in a corckscrew motion, "you're trying to tell me that you have a crush on this Adrien guy hmm~?" He asked as he moved closer and closer to her with every word.

"Well yeah, I-I mean no! I mean, w-what girl wouldn't right?" She asked with a nervous giggle, " but it's not like I stand a chance." She sighed as she stepped back to lean on a chimney nearby. He could tell by the quivering of her lips and her downcast eyes that she was very sad and serious about her words.

"Of course you stand a chance." He wasn't sure if it was the Chat or Adrien side of him speaking to her in that moment.

"That's nice of you to say." She smiled as she patted his shoulder gently. He couldn't stop himself, she was so close to him now and she was so sad and so cute. Chat, no Adriam, no Chat, it didn't matter which side of him the feeling stemmed from in that moment because neither side wanted to stop once he had her in his arms and he had her lips captured by his own. She was resistant at first, but soon gave in when his gloved claw gently circled around her neck to tilt her head back so he could deepen the kiss.

Her flavor was unlike anything he had ever tasted before and it drove him to run his tongue over her lips, asking for more than a hint of the salty sweetness that swam through his mind. He could have screamed in pleasure when her lips parted and it slipped inside. Her mouth was hot and moist; it felt so good to run his tongue around inside it and the taste, oh the taste, it was like a sweet drug that his body was instantly addicted to. He was pressing her body closer and closer to his own, trying to fuse her to himself forever because by god he never wanted this moment to end.

Then it was over and she was wiping her mouth with the back of her hand as fresh tears spilled from her eyes. Tears, of course she would have a hint of saltiness when she had been crying. Why was she crying now though, better yet why was she suddenly way over  _there_  instead of  _here_  in his arms where she _belonged_.

A short whimper escaped his lips as he motioned first to her and then to himself with wide arm movements while a puzzled look stayed upon his features. She would have laughed at the sight if she could but her heart was burning it's way into her stomach with the guilt she harbored there.

_She loved Adrien,_

_But Chat felt so good,_

_But Adrien had her heart and soul,_

_But just that short time with Chat had her body longing for more._

Her heart was for Adrien, her body ached for Chat, and her mind…

Her mind was confused.

He could see the pain and confusion in her eyes as she stood there with one hand still pressed to her mouth, he didn't know why she kept it there since clearly that's where his lips went. He had to do something, anything to make her feel better. With that thought dominating his mind he reached out to her.

"Chat." His name with her voice caused him to stop in his tracks, "Chat will you just take me home now, please?" She shivered as she spoke and he realized that the night air was really very cold for someone in such

Thin

Clothes.

_Come on Adrien, calm down before you burst a blood vessel, somewhere…_

"Su-" he coughed into his fist as his voice broke and turned back to her, "Sure thing, great idea." It took a little work, either one or both of them felt awkward no matter how he tried to pick her up. There was just no way he could hold her in his arms and it not feel too intimate to breathe now. She finally stopped his attempts to carry her before himself and climbed onto his back, wrapping her legs around his waist and her arms around his shoulders to keep her grip on him. He groaned inwardly at the feeling of her wrapped around him. His mind was going in circles, around and around the fact that he wanted nothing more than to have her cling to him like that-

_But not like that at the same time._

It took the whole piggy back ride across the city for her to calm her body down. Why did his stupid tail have to slap against her inner thigh every time he landed on a rooftop? Why did his hair have to brush her face so gently, mimicking feather light kisses along the entirety of it? She closed her eyes tightly and began to recite the different types of hats in her mind to put it on something other than him.

"Home sweet home." He stated as he landed in the back yard of the Agreste mansion.

"What?" She asked, he smiled at the sound of her half asleep voice and the way her nose brushed the back of his neck when she shifted to a more comfortable position on his back.

"I said you're home sweet home now." He turned to give her a wink and she fell backwards, loosing her grip on him and landing in the perfectly manicured grass of the yard.

"B-but you're here and we-" she pressed her finger to her lips and he licked his longingly, ah he envied that finger.

"Shhh." He ordered gently as he mirrored her finger to the mouth movement and gave her another wink, "you don't have to say anymore princess, the kiss never happened okay?" He could feel a lump rise in his throat as he pulled her to her feet and urged her to one of the many back door of the large building.

"But you and I, we-" she was stumbling over her words again and he didn't like that one bit. He pulled her in close and lightly brushed his lips over hers, causing her to be silenced as a shockwave ran through both of them.

"What about that one?" She asked as her brow furrowed.

"It'll be our little secret." He stated as he pushed her towards the door. She turned to say goodbye but he was already gone.

The door opened before she could react and she was pulled backwards into a pair of sturdy arms that filled her with the warm feeling of safety as they squeezed her lightly. She turned around quickly and embraced her father who, despite his large size, was always gentle and kind. Another set of arms wrapped around her as her mother joined in and suddenly the three of them were on the ground, smiling and crying as the sense of relief washed over her and her parents.

She looked up just in time to see Adrien enter the room. Green eyes met blue before shifting to look at the floor under his feet. Guilt rolled through her system once again as she studied his slumped posture. Of course he would be in pain, watching her family hugging and loving each other like that. She looked away just as he approached them.

"I'm glad you're ho-ooo" his statement was cut off by her dad pulling him into the group hug and mashing the two teens uncomfortably close together.

"Glad you're home." He whispered as he looked down, bumping her forehead lightly with his own as he did so.

"Th-th-thanks A-Adrien." She stuttered as the scent of his hair filled her nose.

* * *

Later that night Marinette lay on the edge of her much too large bed with her duvet tucked around her shoulder and her head resting comfortably on her left arm. She was so deep into her slumber that she did not hear her door slowly open and close, nor did she notice the dark shape that made its way to her side. She only shifted once, to run her head against the hand that brushed her bangs away from her face.

"This will be  _my_  little secret." Adrien's husky whisper filled her room just a moment before he leaned down to capture her lips with his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Preview:
> 
> "Wait, you're telling me that you speak to Chats Kwami?" She asked in a shocked whisper as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
> 
> "Yes I am."
> 
> "On a regular basis?" Her voice was beginning to crack but she didn't care.
> 
> "Well a semi-regular one but yes."
> 
> "Does he know who I am, has he seen you with me I mean." Her hands were shaking now.
> 
> "Um, yes when we were living at your house he would come by after the two of you were asleep." Tikkis voice was getting squeaky as she sensed her chosens line of thought.
> 
> "He knows I'm L-Ladybug! So that means that Chat knows-"


	3. Chapter 3

The morning sun broke through her windows just as she broke off a steamy kiss with Chat in her dreams. She groaned loudly as her eyes fluttered open and her mind replayed the dream once again. She had been dreaming about Adrien doing that sort of thing with her for nearly three years and now suddenly that stupid black clad cat wormed his way into her crushes spot in her dreams, it wasn't fair! It wasn't right! Something was wrong with her.

_Chat was a good kisser though._

A blush bloomed out from her cheeks and spread down to her chest as she rolled herself out of bed and headed for her bathroom. She needed a shower, needed to clear her mind that was even more jumbled than it had been the night before. Her clothes were removed swiftly and placed in a hamper by the door and the rush of water from the fancy overhead shower was cut on and turned up until it sounded like a waterfall was echoing in the tiled bathroom. She placed herself under the water and allowed the steaming liquid to wash over her face and shoulders. The heat from it was nothing compared to how her body felt when she first opened her eyes. How did he do that to her after just one kiss? Was she going crazy or had she really developed deeper feelings than friendship for her black clad counterpart? If she had then why did she feel so guilty about it, it wasn't like she and Adrien had a-

At the thought of Adrien a shockwave like the one she felt the night before when Chat kissed her the second time ran through her body. She found herself leaning against the wall while her left hand brushed the space between her slightly there abs and the soft curls that surrounded the spot that the shockwave ended its journey at. She closed her eyes and lightly beat her head against the tiles.

_I'm such a fucking fickle minded girl._

As the thought crossed her mind her ears perked up to the sound of Tikkis voice, it was faint compared to that of the water around her but she could still make out a few words:

"Plagg….no…..out any second….go…..finds out." She lifted her head and furrowed her brow as a soft oomph sound reached her ears from the other room. Who was the Kwami talking to? She turned the water off in time to hear her dear friend command whoever it was to "hurry" and this only confused her more.

"Tikki?" She called out worriedly as she draped a white and pink robe around her shoulders. She wasn't surprised when the small god fazed through the wall as if it wasn't even there. It floated before her in a nervous manner as she tied her robe shut and moved her still damp hair from her head.

"Do you need something Marinette?" Tikki asked innocently as she placed her fingerless hands behind her back.

"I was just wondering who you were talking to, I couldn't really make out much past your voice." She answered the small god honestly as she moved to the sink to brush her teeth. The red and black spotted being followed to sit on the edge of the sink as she studied the Blackett carefully and thought over her words.

"You know that I combined with your miraculous allow you to transform right?" She asked and noticed how the girl tapped her earring with her free hand as she did so.

"Yeah." Was the short reply that Marinette gave after spitting what she could of the used toothpaste out of her mouth. She reached for a cup and filled it with water, going through the routine of rinsing out her mouth as Tikki continued.

"Well it should be obvious but Chat-Noir gets his abilities in much the same way." Marinette nodded her head as she swished the water around in her mouth so Tikki decided to go on with her explanation, "well, his Kwami and I have known one another for quite a long while and we like to check up on one another every now and then. I was speaking to him in your room." Marinette nearly spit the liquid in her mouth out onto the large vanity mirror.

"Wait, you're telling me that you speak to Chats Kwami?" She asked in a shocked whisper as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

"Yes I am."

"On a regular basis?" Her voice was beginning to crack but she didn't care.

"Well a semi-regular one but yes."

"Does he know who I am, has he seen you with me I mean." Her hands were shaking now.

"Um, yes when we were living at your house he would come by after the two of you were asleep." Tikkis voice was getting squeaky as she sensed her chosens line of thought.

"He knows I'm L-Ladybug! So that means that Chat knows-"

"No," Tikki interrupted her, "just like I know who Chat really is, we made a promise not to tell you two after the first time you met as Ladybug and Chat-Noir."

"Have you, I mean, does Chat know about your visits?" She asked as she gripped the sink to steady herself.

"As far as I know, no." Was her reply.

"Do I know him, outside the mask?" Marinette wouldn't look up as she asked the question.

"Well,"

"No never mind I don't want to know!" Marinette fell to her knees and clutched her hands to her ears as she shut her eyes and tried to block out everything around her, "I can't do this! I can't deal with this! It's too much!"

"It's okay Marinette, calm down. I won't tell you anything you don't want to know." The Kwami floated down to pay her forehead gently as she spoke.

"Of course he doesn't know who I am," she chuckled a bit as the thought occurred to her, "if he knew I was Ladybug I'd never get him to leave me alone."

"You weren't Ladybug last night." Tikki didn't mean to say it out loud but the shocked big eyes glare that she received followed by the scared scream that was muffled by her chosens knees told her that she had most definitely vocalized her thoughts.

"He knows!" She wailed as she shook her head against her knees, "fuck he knows and that's why he kissed me! Oh god what am I gonna do?" She was on the verge of a total breakdown as she sat on the cool tile of the bathroom floor.

"Shh shh it's okay I swear to you that he doesn't know that you Marinette are Ladybug, you need to relax a bit. What happened last night just happened, a spur of the moment kind of thing so you don't need to beat yourself up over it. Just relax and finish getting ready or you will be late for school." Tikkis wasn't wrong on the last part, she knew this and relaxed slightly. She didn't want to go downstairs looking like a train wreck and run into Adrien after all.

* * *

Adrien's head popped up from behind his couch as Plagg floated in and gave a long drawn out yawn. His green eyes were ablaze with anger as he spotted the tiny black Kwami and his mouth was drawn into a tight line.

"Where the fuck have you been!" He demanded as he stood and made his way over to snatch the being from the air.

"Chill chill," Plagg stated as he waved his paws nonchalantly, "I was just checking in with a friend, I do it all the time. No worries."

"A friend!" Adrien was ready to burst a blood vessel.

"Yeah, Ladybugs Kwami, Tikki." Plagg yawned as he floated away from Adrien's hands that had dropped to his sides.

"You know who Ladybug is don't you." He stated flatly.

"Yeah." Was Plaggs reply.

"You've known all along?" His voice was calm but his eyes were wild.

"Yeah."

"I'm gonna kill you!" He leapt at the god that easily avoided him, much as he had when they first met all those years ago.

"Chill out man, Tikki knows who you are too, it was the two of you who decided to hide it." Plagg stated lazily as he floated just out of the blondes reach.

"Does she know who I am, Ladybug?" He asked as a nervous sense washed over him.

"I don't think so, I'm pretty sure if she did Ladybug would treat Chat-Noir much differently." Plagg was grinning from ear to ear as he spoke.

"What do you mean by-" his question was cut off by a light knocking on his door.

"A-Adrien? Are you ready, I mean to school, to go to school with me? Or without me you know, we don't have to go together even if we're living together, I mean we aren't together like that but maybe.. are you ready for school?" He instantly calmed down enough to chuckle as the sweetest voice he heard all day echoed in his ears.

"I'm just about ready Marinette, just finishing up some things." He called as he opened his shirt to welcome Plagg into his hidden pocket. He took a moment to calm down and wipe the goofy grin that he had plastered on his face away as he tried to calm himself. He didn't know how he would be able to cope with being near her and not touching her anymore but he would have to take all his modeling training up until that point and attempt to control his facial expressions.

By the time he met her in the hallway he had to fight hard not to jump for sheer joy at the thought of going to school with her. He reached for her almost out of instinct and covered it up by moving to adjust a painting on the wall that was perfectly fine to begin with. Her face turned beet red as his hand moved past it and he had to focus not not copying her actions in that moment.

"W-we should go." She mumbled as she moved to hide her face from him; he almost groaned with the need to pull her into his arms, almost.

"Yeah." He replied in a soft voice, "don't wanna be late do we?" He didn't wait for her to reply as he moved past her and continued down the hallway, if he would have waited he knew that it would have ended with her pinned against the wall and him kissing every inch of her-

Dammit get under control Agreste!

"I hope that we don't have PE today." He heard her mutter to herself as she followed him, "I've had enough acrobatics for a while." The whisper that followed was almost too faint to make out, almost. He smiled broadly knowing she couldn't see his face.

* * *

"Girl why shouldn't I come by? We use to hang out every weekend." Alyas voice cut through Adrien's thoughts as they sat through home room. He could sense Marinette behind him and couldn't help the outburst of goofy lopsided grins that crossed his face and caused Nino to shoot him quizzical glances.

"I know but I'm really busy helping Papa and Mamon settle in and I have a lot of homework from the last two weeks so I'm swamped. Sorry Alya." Was the reply of the girl in question, a reply that caused him to chuckle and wave away yet another questioning glance.

"Well we better still be going to the Mayoral ball because I'm not letting you get out of it now that your crisis is over." He raised his brows at this, he was going as Chat of course so if she went he could see her in a formal dress. His mind drifted to the more revealing of fashion statements that season and he had to move his bag to his lap.

"Uh, uh sure. I can't wait." Her voice had a tinge of worry in it which caused his brow to furrow.

"I'm not gonna let you back out."

"I know."

"I'll pick you up at your house."

"No!" He could turn and look at her now, since her loud exclamation had the whole room doing so, "I-I mean my place isn't ready for visitors yet and I'd be too embarrassed to show you around." She mumbled after being reprimanded by their teacher.

"Why don't we all just meet up at my house." He interjected before any further questions could be asked. Marinette a look of gratitude did not go unnoticed by him, which caused his lips to pull into a small smirk, "hell why don't you and Nino stop by around eight? That will give everyone enough time to be ready with an hour to spare."

"Sounds good to me bro." Nino stated with a shrug.

"You better be there." Alya stated as she poked Marinette on the shoulder, "AND" poke, "ON" poke, "TIME."

"I will." Marinette squeaked as she rubbed the shoulder that had been assisted. Adrien could think of a few ways to make it feel all better, mainly concerning licking and kissing. He pressed his bag down in his lap as his smirk turned into a nervous smile.

"Good." Was the brunettes reply as she leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms over her chest, "that's settled then." And with that it was, their day continued as if nothing had happened at all. There was a few times that he heard a faint sigh that emmited from the girl sitting behind him, and he swore he saw her playing with her lips a few times when he glanced back. Each time she seemed to be looking at something that only she could see. There was also a moment when she dropped a piece of paper outside during their lunch hour and he picked it up to see the same phrase written over and over, though it seemed more like a formula.

_**C=?** _

_**A=?** _

_**C or A?** _

The paper went straight into his pocket for safe keeping.

* * *

By the time they got home that day (he made sure she rode with him this time) he had made several calls to Nathalie and set up quite a few dresses from his fathers latests line for her to try on. It was going to be a surprise for her when she got to her room and he was practically bouncing with anticipation.

She on the other hand was worrying her bottom lip between her fingers as she thought through all the handmade dresses she had to choose from, none of which were exactly ball worthy. She knew Chloe would jump at the chance to humiliate her in public, especially if it got out that she was living in the Agreste mansion, so that night she would have to be perfect in ever sense (and avoid the blonde if possible). She was nervous and had to stop herself from openly gnawing at her fingernails as they pulled up on their street. She couldn't stop her foot from frantically jumping which caused her knee to beat roughly against his own when they went around the corner.

"Owch," he winced and rubbed the spot where her knee connected with his.

"I'm sorry!" She exclaimed as she shuffled about in the small space to investigate his knee, it was so cramped with her standing that she was folded over with her knees on either side of his and having to rub her hands over his leg to try to find the spot she had injured. He winced again and she was sure that she had found the spot, but his sudden grip on her waist caused her to pause. Her pulse pounded in her ears as his fingers gripped onto her and gave a gentle squeeze.

"Please stop," he wined in a soft tone.

"Ad-Adrien I-"

"Shh." He removed one hand from her waist to place a finger on her lips, "I'm, fine. Just please sit down before something happens." He barely had himself under control, and the fact that he could tell that her chest was secured with a pink and white lacy bra was not helping him one bit. He silently thanked her and cursed himself as she awkwardly found her way to her seat. His bag once again covered his lap as he quickly turned his head to look out of the window.

_She was going to be the death of him for sure._

She nervously bit onto her thumbnail as she shot him a sideways glance. They were pulling into his driveway now and he wasn't looking at her anymore. After their day at school she had thought he had forgiven her but now she had messed up once again. She walked a thin line with him, Adrien Agreste was someone she couldn't quite keep on good terms with and she was beginning to worry about how the rest of her life at the Agreste mansion would go.

"I'm sorry." She whispered as she moved her hands down to her lap and began to nervously twiddle her fingers around each other. They were stilled when his larger hand moved to rest over them.

"It's not your fault." He stayed with a soft smile,  _it's just too cramped in here_. He added in his mind as she returned his smile with one of her own. The door to his left opened then and he turned to see Gorilla staring in at the with his usual glare. A quick chuckle escaped him as he slid out and held his hand out to help her do the same. She was slow taking his offer and clumsily slid out of the car while nervously fidgeting and awkwardly stumbling inside the vehicle. She released her hand from his grasp as soon as she was outside and clutched her purses strap in both hands.

"Adrien." He turned his attention begrudgingly away from the nervous girl and his eyes found the cool calm gaze of Nathalie. She stood on the front steps with a folder resting in her crossed arms and a slight frown on her face as she studied the girl, "I have finished readying your request. You and miss Dupain-Chang can head up to her room when you're ready."

"Thanks Nathalie." He stated as he turned to shoot a very confused Marinette a playful wink, "come on, I have a surprise for you for tonight."

* * *

It had been two hours and she was still studying the dresses that filled the large walk in closet to her room, each of them were more expensive alone than her entire wardrobe and each of them were beautiful. Her mind reeled as she ran her fingers over a silky red number with black roses embroidered around the bodice. She was currently standing in her robe with only a door separating her from her crush of nearly three years and she knew that he was waiting to judge the dresses.

"None of these would look half as good on me as they would on Chloe or Alya." She sighed as she toyed with the hem of a shimmering blue number. She was much too thin, without the needed curves to fill out the dresses and make them truly look the way the designer, his father more than likely, had envisioned them.

A knock on the door startled her, causing her to jump and knock into a line of the expensive dresses.

"Marinette, everything alright in there." Adrien's voice was strained and faint when it reached her ears.

"F-Fine!" She exclaimed, "I'm f-fine, not as fine as you, not that I'm saying you're fine! I mean of course you're fine! I mean," she sighed and slapped her palm against her forehead, "all good in here sorry." She could almost swear she heard him chuckling at her stammering and felt herself blush profusely.

"Alright well, I'm ready when you are." She groaned inwardly as she heard him chuckle once again.

_He's gonna be the death of me I swear…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Preview:
> 
> "You know you can't resist me bugaboo." The response that he gave her was automatic, but it sent a pang of guilt straight to his heart.
> 
> "Easy kitty," she replied before turning to Alya once again, "I would love to stay and Chat some more," that's when her earring beeped, "but I can't," she reached up to cover the price of jewelry with one hand as she spoke, "I can't wait to read your blog. Keep up the good work okay!" She began to twirl her your as she walked backwards towards the open skylight, "bug out!" And with that she was gone, leaving Chat with one lingering question on his mind;
> 
> When had she used her Lucky Charm?


	4. Chapter 4

"No, not that one!" Adrien exclaimed as he covered his eyes with his hands and pushed his knees together. Marinette was in a deep green dress that clung to her curves tightly and flared out at her knees. The bodice was decorated with gold gems that highlighted her breasts while the cut of the top dropped into a low V that stopped just above her navel. A thin covering of mesh like lace covered the parts of her upper body that the dresses cut didn't, but it still left little to his imagination.

"Th-this is t-the twelfth dress I-I've t-tried." She stammered as she shifted from one foot to the other and looked down shyly at herself. He had responded the same way to each and every dress that she had tried on and she was beginning to think that her fears in the closet weren't unfounded.

"My lucky number is thirteen." He offered without looking at her.

"No ones lucky number is _thirteen_." She groaned.

"Mine is," he stated as he glanced up to her before looking down quickly, "didn't my father design something, anything, less… revealing?" He asked shyly which caused a blush to spread from her cheeks to her chest, something he could see quite clearly with what she had on.

"Well, there is one. It's got a sweetheart neckline but-"

"That one!" He exclaimed before she could finish, "try on that one." He added in a calmer fashion.

"Okay." She murdered as she headed back into the closet. The dress in question was a deep red princess cut with a sweetheart neckline that hinted at her cleavage without showing it off. The skirt flared out around her and had a mesh covering with black lace spirals that sparkled from the glitter they were covered in. The puffy sleeves that rested just below her shoulders were made in much the same way as the skirt covering. As she looked at herself in the mirror one word sprung to mind, Ladybug.

"Maybe if I-" she mumbled as she reached up to take down her signature pigtails and looked in the mirror once again. Dark hair fell around her shoulders and curled up at her neck to highlight her face. She frowned at the sight and toyed with a strand near her cheek.

"You only see Ladybug because you ARE Ladybug. No one else will be able to connect the dots. Trust me." Tikkis small voice called from on top of the mirror. Marinette groaned and face palmed at her words. She was hearing puns everywhere since her run in with Chat, her cheeks burned at the memory and she moved her free hand up to cover her face as well.

"You sure Tikki?" She asked quietly.

"Positive." The Kwami stated.  _Pawsitive_ , she heard echoing in her mind. Another groan escaped her as she shook her head against her hands.

* * *

When she finally found the courage to leave the walk in closet her bedroom was empty. She looked everywhere in the room, including shyly glancing into the bathroom, for Adrien before sighing and sitting down on her bed. Tikki made her way to sit on her chose she shoulder and patted her cheek lightly. He didn't even wait to see what it would look like on her, her nerves caused butterflies to swarm around her stomach as her foot thumped rhythmically against the carpeted floor. She felt a tiny bit of relief as he Kwami continued to pat her cheek gently. At least he didn't see her in a dress reminiscent of her costume, if he had she was sure that he would wonder why she looked so strangely similar to a certain super heroine that he had a well known crush on.

"I want him to like me, but not just because I happen to be someone else too." She groaned as she looked up at the ceiling above her head. Tikki only nodded and continued to lightly pat her cheek.

"I know how you feel but we have to hurry if you don't want Alya to know that you live here." The small Kwami gently stated as she floated up into Marinettes vision.

"You're right." She groaned as she stood and allowed the Kwami to hide away in her bodice. Without her purse this was the best she could do. She snatched her ticket off of her nightstand and sighed at the words written on it; she would have to be there as both Marinette and Ladybug, not that she hasn't done it before, but this time she would be in a closed off ballroom full of people who would jump at the chance to discover who Ladybug really was. Her best friend was not only included on that list, she was at the very top, second only to Chat-Noir that is.

She stood and without another word she made her way out of her room and down the hallway towards the front room of the mansion. Her parents were waiting at the base of the large staircase and both looked up with pride in their eyes as she crested the top of the stairwell. She glanced around the room but could not see Adrien or his father anywhere. Nathalie and the gorilla were also unusually absent which caused her a bit of concern. She bit her bottom lip and looked nervously towards the open front doors that lead out to a world that was growing steadily darker with the oncoming night.

"Where's Adrien?" She asked as her mother made her way up the stairs to her side. The woman who she received her dark locks from adjusted the skirt of her dress before stepping back and clasping her hands together before her chest.

"Oh, you just look so," she began as a tear sparkled in her eyes. She wiped it away quickly and gave her daughter a soft smile, "now is not the time for that. You just look so, beautiful." She shook her head to clear it and let out a soft endearing sigh, "Adrien had to leave a bit early, he asked us to make sure that you were ready to go and outside on time."

"Well, I'm ready to go." She stated softly as she raised her arms slightly at her sides. Her mother nodded proudly as she lead her down to her father who was smiling as he wiped the tears away from his own eyes. He wrapped her in a warm hug and gave her a gentle squeeze. She could hear his ragged breathing and feel his body shuddering as he held back his sobs. She knew her parents were both proud and scared about the thought of her growing up, moments like this only made it more clear to her than ever before.

"You look beautiful." He whispered into her ear as he gave her another gentle squeeze.

"Thank you Papa, Mamon." She was nearly in tears as she squeezed him back before pulling out of his hold. She wiped the stray tears away from her eyes and looked at each of them in turn, "I'm ready to go now." She stated before gripping their hands one last time and making her way out of the mansion.

"She's growing up so fast." Tom said as his beloved wiped his tears away from his eyes.

"I know dear," she cooed as she embraced him, "I know."

Alya showed up with Nino in tow just a few minutes after Marinette stepped outside. She cooed over how her precious little Maribug, the nickname seemed to be sticking now, looked just like a princess in a fairytale and gave the dark haired girl a tight squeeze that left her worried for her poor Keanu's well being. She explained to them that Adrien had already left and they waved goodbye to her parents who had come out to snap a few quick photos of the teens in their formal attire.

"So is this a Marinette original?" The dark skinned girl asked as they began their journey to the Le Grand Paris Hotel.

"Actually I um, borrowed it from the Agreste family." Marinette nervously replied as she toyed with the skirt of her dress. This caused her best friend to squeal in delight and wrap her arms around Marinettes neck. She jumped when Nino chuckled and pulled his girlfriend off of her.

"My  _man_." He chuckled once again after he was positioned safely between the two girls, "already bringing out the big guns and giving you expensive gifts."

"No! No, that's not it. I just borrowed this for tonight. He didn't give it to me, he just loaned it to me. It's not like he likes me or anything. I mean I know he likes me but he doesn't like  _LIKE_  me you know." She babbled quickly before looking away from the other two to hide her blush.

"Girl, chill out! He isn't even here so just calm down and breathe." Her best friends advice was swiftly taken, though it didn't help her shaking fingers.

"Woah, I didn't mean to stress you out or anything. Tonight's gonna be a blast, right Alya?" Nino offered as he looked quickly to his girlfriend for confirmation.

"Right." She agreed as she rested her fists on her hips in a very Alya way, "come on Nino, we have to escort the princess to the ball." Before anyone could object she was between them with her arms hooked through theirs and a broad smile painted on her face, "lets go!" She called as she ushered them forward.

* * *

Chat was already surrounded by people when the small group of three entered the ballroom. He had on his classic grin as he shook hands with reporters and socialites that gave him much more space than they would have if he wasn't in his mask. However when his eyes landed on the dark haired petite girl in a gorgeous red gown with her friends by her sides time seemed to stop for him and the people that stood between the two of them faded into the background as her eyes met his. Even without her pigtails she was beautiful to him, and the way her hair moved about her oh so temptingly bare shoulders as she turned her head to whisper something to the budding reporter before nodding at her reply made him go weak in the knees. This was almost worse than the green dress he had last seen her in because though it left a lot to the imagination, he had quite a big one indeed.

"When will Ladybug be joining us?" The voice of a reporter broke through his thoughts, causing him to chuckle and rub the back of his neck as reality came back to him.

"Well, you know my bugaboo," he offered into the microphone that was held up to him, "she does everything in her own time. She will show up though, don't worry."

"Chat-Noir, do you have any words for the Ladyblog on the most recent akuma attack?" His head whipped around to see Alya with her phone held up, waiting eagerly for his response. Who he did not see beside her however, worried him.

Marinette was gone.

"I think I can help with that." All eyes turned to see Ladybug standing on top of one of the many marble statues that decorated the ballroom. She had a cocky smirk on her face and her hands resting on her hips just like when she confidently faced their enemies. Her pigtails bobbed against her neck as her bluebell eyes locked onto his green ones. She gave him a playful little wink before preforming a perfect front flip off of the statue to land beside him as if she had practiced it many times before.

"Oh Ladybug, you're here!" Alya exclaimed as she turned her phones camera on the super heorine, "why did my lil Maribug have to go to the bathroom now of all times?" Chat noticed the faintest frown cross his partners face when the buddding reporter asked the offhandedly question, but it vanished when she spoke again, "how did the two of you defeat the akuma so quickly?"

" Chat-Noir and I are partners. We trust one another fully and so we can trust in one another's skills," he felt her warm hand land on his shoulder as she continued to speak, "I think I speak for both of us when I say that it was our teamwork and mutual trust and understanding that lead to the quick end of the last akuma. I'd even go so far as to say he is one of my best friends, with of without the mask." He didn't know why her words made him feel so warm inside when just the night before he was kissing someone else. How could he truly say he loved her if his mind was filled with another girl?

"Are you saying that you know each other outside of Ladybug and Chat-Noir?" Alyssa question mimicked one that had been on his mind for a long time.

"Oh no, if we did I wouldn't get any down time thanks to a needy little kitty looking for attention." She chuckled as she answered the question and the sound was so familiar to him that he nearly thought he had lost his mind.

"You know you can't resist me bugaboo." The response that he gave her was automatic, but it sent a pang of guilt straight to his heart.

"Easy kitty," she replied before turning to Alya once again, "I would love to stay and Chat some more," that's when her earring beeped, "but I can't," she reached up to cover the price of jewelry with one hand as she spoke, "I can't wait to read your blog. Keep up the good work okay!" She began to twirl her your as she walked backwards towards the open skylight, "bug out!" And with that she was gone, leaving Chat with one lingering question on his mind;

When had she used her Lucky Charm?

* * *

"I'm so sorry Tikki, but if I left my hair down then everyone would figure it out." Marinette cooed as she climbed carefully through the bathroom window. She held the exhausted Kwami in her hands as she sat down slowly on a nearby bench.

"It's okay Marinette, everyone expects Ladybug to be in pigtails, I understand." Tikki assured her as she attempted to sit up, "though you're lucky that your Lucky Charm was threat and not something else entirely." Marinette nodded as she ran her thumb over Tikkis forehead.

"I just didn't know that transforming and using my Lucky Charm back to back would take so much out of you. I'm sorry." She sighed as she lifted her head, intent on leaning it back against the wall. She did not get that far however, as she froze on the spot with her eyes growing wide in shock and fear at what she saw there.

Alya, with her phone held before her and an equally shocked expression on her face.

" _Oh my god_."

"Alya! T-this isn't what it looks like!"

" _Oh_.  _My_.  _God_."

"Alya please, shh there's no reason to freak out."

"OH. MY.  _GOD_! You, your, your  _LADYBUG_?!" The dark skinned girl dropped her phone and rushed over to grab Marinette by the shoulders, " _YOU_!" She shook Marinette a bit roughly, " _ARE_!" Another hard shake caused the Blackett to wince, " _LADYBUG_!" At this point she was shaking her so much that she nearly lost her grip on poor Tikki.

"Alya please calm down before someone hears you and comes to investigate." Marinette wined as she pleaded with her eyes for her friend to stop screaming.

" _Girl_." Alya moved close enough for Marinette to see each fleck of gold in her eyes, " _spill_." With just those two words Marinette knew that there would be only one way to pacify her friend enough so that on wondering partygoers would wonder why there was a girl screaming in the bathroom.

"Okay," she sighed as she gently pushed the other girl away, "but not here, we need to go somewhere a bit more private okay?" She begged in a rushed whisper and stood as she carefully held Tikki to her chest in one hand.

"Deal." Alya returned in her own hushed tone.

"And no recording either." Marinette added as she watched her friend retrieve her phone.

"What! Oh come on girl! This is my whole goal, you've known that all along!" Alya exclaimed which earned her a quick shushing from her best friend. She crossed her arms as she stared down the smaller girl, attempting to pry the answer out of her without uttering another word.

It worked.

"I can't let Adrien find out that I, the stammering klutz machine, am this confident girl who can kick butt and take names no problem. I also can't risk Chat connecting me to Ladybug, sort of told you my reasons behind that already." Marinette stated quickly after making absolutely sure no one else could hear them, "so please, just do me this one favor and don't record it."

"Alright girl," Alya sighed in defeat, "deal." With that the two girls made their way out of the lavish bathroom and into the grandiose ballroom. Alya was clearly barely holding in the need to force Marinette to go over every single detail of her other persona as they made their way towards the doors that would take them out of the rather loud party. They had almost made it out when a crackly and familiar voice stopped both girls in their tracks.

"Marinette! Fancy seeing you here." She wanted to groan as Chats arm draped around her shoulder and her body was pulled towards his, "can't say I'm purrticularly sad about it though." He added as he gave both girls a playful wink.

"Aren't you the playboy Chat-Noir?" It was her best friend that saved poor Marinette from the awkward situation, "here I thought you were in love with Ladybug."

Oh no.

Shit, he thought, shit. Shit. Shit, you aren't Adrien right now! He could feel the cold hands of fear grip him as the dark skinned brunette held her phone up to him with a smirk on her face. He would be in hot water if he couldn't talk his way out of this situation, and fast!

"Oh, I am. Marinette and I are just really close friends, aren't we Marinette?" He squeezed her shoulder gently as he turned to her for confirmation.

"Y-yeah, we're friends. Not particularly close friends though." She mumbled in reply, which is what caused him not to fight back when she pulled away to stand next to her best friend, "I'm sorry Chat-Noir but Alya and I have to go. Something important came up. It was nice to see you again though." She didn't wait for him to reply as she ushered the other girl out of the ballroom quickly.

He just stood there, dumbfounded as he watched them vanish from his sight by the two large mahogany doors closing behind their retreating backs. She had rushed away from him so quickly as Chat, he knew that she must have been upset about what happened between them the night before. His heart sank at the thought and his leather feline ears flattened out against his hair. He had to have majorly fucked up if that sweet, kind, and caring girl was running from him as if he just announced he had the Black Plague.

* * *

"So, we are in private now." Alya urged as she took a sip from the cheap soft drink that they had purchased on their way to the park. Marinette was positioned on a park bench, feeding bits of chocolate chip cookie to a red and black spotted blob in her hands that Alya had yet to get a proper look at.

"What do you want to know?" The Blackett asked sheepishly.

"Everything!" Alya exclaimed.

"I knew she would say that." A tiny voice called from Marinettes hands. Alya screamed and jumped back nearly two feet when Tikki spoke, but froze on the spot when she floated out of Marinettes grasp and gave her a small shy wave.

"How the, who the, what the!" The bespeckled girl shouted as she pointed at the Kwami, who for her part was doing a very close resemblance of a face palm.

"Tikki this is my best friend Alya, Alya this is Tikki, my Kwami." Marinette surprised even herself at how calmly she spoke to them.

"Hello." Tikki stated.

"Kwami?" Alya asked at the same time.

"A Kwami works with their chosen sister miraculous to transform them into, well it's hard to explain." Tikki began.

"Wait," Alya cut in, "so basically you make my little Maribug into Ladybug?" She asked as her fingers twitches nearby her purse where her phone rested.

"That's the simplified answer, but yes." Tikki nodded as she answered the question.

"So then," Alya sat down and gripped her drink tightly in her shaking hands as she studied the Kwami, "how did you pick Marinette to be your chosen?"

"Well, the master picked her, he chose Chat-Noir as well. They exhibited kindness and concern that no one else around him would and this he granted them the abilities needed to take down Hawkmoth, who also has a miraculous that allows him to control others through akumas." Tikki landed on Marinettes shoulder as she spoke.

"That's the simplified version?" Alya asked.

"Yes."

"So wait, did your master give hawkmoth his?" Alya pressed on in a very reporter-sequence way.

"No!" Both girls jumped and turned to the tiny god as he voice rose, "just like anything else a miraculous can be stolen. We Keanu's are tied to our miraculouses and thus we can be stolen as well."

"Or given away." Marinette sighted.

"Yes, well. That situation resolved itself." Tikki supplied.

"Oh no," Alya pointed to the two of them in turn, "no cryptic talking, I said everything and you agreed."

"Well," Tikki began.

"I may have almost passed the Ladybug responsibility on to you." Marinette finished.

"What! When?" Alya demanded.

"During the Stoneheart incident, I messed up bad and I was doubting myself. You seemed to be the best person around to be Ladybug so I removed my miraculous and hid them in your bag. But then you were trapped by that car and calling out for help and something finally snapped in me. That was the moment I truly embraced Ladybug as part of myself." Marinette explained as she looked down at the remains of the cookie in her hands.

"Girl." It was all Alya could get out. The single word was laced with so many emotions that Marinette did not want to delve too deep into them out of fear of breaking into tears on the spot.

"I'm sorry." Her voice broke as she softly spoke the apology.

"Oh Maribug, it's okay sweetie." Alya cooed as she rubbed her back gently, "honestly I am grateful to Ladybu- to you for saving me that day, and every day after that."

"You are?" Was her squeaky question.

"Yeah girl, you're badass as Marinette and Ladybug. Hell im lucky to be your friend." Alya reassured her.

"So, you aren't mad at me?"

"Honestly, I'm a bit miffed that you didn't tell me sooner, but no. I'm not mad at you." The two friends smiled at Alyas words which allowed Tikki to let out a relieved sigh.

"I'm glad." Marinette sighed as well as she leaned her head against her friends shoulder.

"One last question though," Alya stated as she stared down Tikki, " _who is Chat-Noir_?"

* * *

"I'm sorry Alya, but I can't tell you because I just don't know."

Three hours. It had been three hours since they had their life changing conversation. Three long drawn out hours of walking around the quiet streets of Paris while Alya asked the same question over and over again in many different ways in an attempt to draw the answer from both Marinette, who could honestly say she had no idea, and Tikki, who did know but was not budging and thus was not saying who his civilian idea really was.

"Oh come on, he said that you two were close friends." Alya urged.

"He is friends with Marinette, he has no idea that I'm also Ladybug." This was beginning to get tiring.

"Or does he?"

"He better not."

"He doesn't." Tikki deadpanned in hopes of dropping the subject.

"That makes no sense to me." Alya sighed out of frustration, "how can you two trust each other if you don't really know each other?" She shook her head as she spoke the question.

"We trust one another because out there it's life or death. If you don't trust your partner then you can get sloppy trying to watch what they are doing, you get sloppy and you die. Same goes for if we know each other both in and out of the mask, if one of us gets caught then all it would take is torture, something that our enemy is not above, and then we are both dead." Marinette explained slowly.

"I couldn't have worded that any better." Tikki added with a nod.

"I guess that makes sense." Alya stated after a long silence, "but damn I still want to know who he is." Tikki chuckled at this statement, causing Marinette to shoot her a glare that clearly meant she needed to hush up.

"We've been gone a long time." The dark haired girl sighed as she stayed the simple fact.

"Yeah," Alya answered with a slow shrug, "Nino must be worried about us by now. We should head back."

"Um, about Nino…"

"No worries girl, I won't tell anybody your secret even Nino so don't worry." Alya gave her a wink before pulling her into a tight one armed hug. The two girls smiled at one another as Tikki stashed herself away in Marinettes bodice once again. With that they were off towards the ball, arm in arm, for the second time that night.

* * *

Adrien stepped out of the men's bathroom almost at the same time as the girls walked back in through the large double doors. They were smiling and giggling at some inside joke so he figures that whatever was making her act strangely before was long forgotten. He felt himself smile and relax at the sight, his hands slipping into his trouser pockets and nearly crushing Plagg in the process. He received a sharp nip to his thumb for this action, which caused him to wince and freed him from his thoughts in the process.

"Yo man what's up?" He turned to see his best friend Nino, wearing a suit but still decked out in his favorite hat as well.

"Sup?" He replied as they fist bumped in greeting before he returned his hand to his pocket.

"I didn't see you around." The dark skinned male stated before taking a drink from a cup that probably cost more than his entire vinyl collection.

"I was caught up with some of my fathers partners." Adrien shrugged as he spoke. His eyes wondered back to the girls as they approached the two boys.

"Hey honey did you miss me?" Alya asked as she skipped over to link her arm with Ninos. This left Marinette standing before Adrien and nervously fiddling with the skirt of her dress. He wouldn't have minded her cute actions much if they were alone, but the fact that they were in a ballroom full of men who would no doubt notice the bit of extra cleavage that her actions gave her had him stepping closer before her to block the view from any wondering eyes.

"H-hi." She said shyly.

"Hey," he gave her a soft smile as their eyes met.

"The party seems fun." She stated as she nervously looked around them.

"A little loud, but Chloe did help put it together." He sighed as he spoke. She gave him a small nod and turned once again, this time to study the lovey Dovey scene going on behind him between their two best friends. He could tell that the young designer was uncomfortable in the large crowd and could feel his brow furrow at the thought, "hey do you want to grab a drink and find somewhere quiet to hide out?" He offered before her could talk himself out of it.

"Su-sure, I mean unless you would rather stay." She answered with a slight squeak to her voice. He smirked and took her hand before she could protest, grabbing them each a glass from a passing waiter as he practically dragged her through the ballroom and out into the cool night air that greeted them on the balcony. She followed him without protest but removed her hand from his quickly once they were alone.

"This is better." He smiled as he watched her silently move to lean on the railing that surrounded them.

"Yeah." She whispered as she wrapped her arms around herself and looked out upon the twinkling lights of Paris at night. He moved closer to her and instead of wrapping her tightly in his arms, which he longed to do, he removed his suit jacket and draped it over her shoulders. She looked startled for a moment before giving him the sweetest smile; it was one that made his heart melt, it was also one that made it that much harder for him not to touch her.

"You looked cold." He said it to fill the awkward silence between them.

"I-I was a bit cold, but, but now you're cold aren't you? I mean you can't be hot, I mean you are hot but not in a," she sighed as she buried her face in his jacket to hide the crimson hue that bloomed out over it, "I'm sorry." She mumbled into the fabric. To her surprise he began to laugh and rested one arm across her shoulder. She was pulled into his side in much the same way as she had been pulled into Chats. They could feel each other's body heat mingling between them and becoming a warmth that neither fully understood.

"You don't have to be sorry." He whispered as he turned to look down at her. She had lifted her head at that exact moment causing their noses to brush against each other. She could have sworn that the heat between then had become like that of an oven read for baking. She couldn't find a proper place to rest her gaze; his chin only made her eyes trail up to his mouth, and if she stared at the tip of his nose then his own intense green eyes would be in her vision, boring into her like emerald drills. She couldn't move in his grip and the railing stopped her from moving forward. She did the only thing that her muddled thoughts would allow her to do in that moment.

She closed her eyes.

He could feel himself losing control as her bright bluebell eyes slowly slid closed. His hand that he had a vice grip on his drink with began to shake as his eyes darted to her lips and his pulse quickened to the point that he could hear it pounding in his ears. Why did this sweet girl have to be so damn tempting? She tempted him with each and every action she made. He swallowed down the lump that was growing in his throats and licked his lips as his eyes locked onto hers once again. She could turn him to butter with just one glance, he did not know exactly when the feeling started within him but every encounter with her that he had only intensified the feeling.

He found himself leaning forward as if magnetically pulled to those tantalizingly sweet lips. There was no mistake, he was addicted to each and every bit of her; from the soft sweetness of her lips, to the strawberry vanilla scent that wafted off her skin, to the way her silky smooth locks of hair twirled around his fingers as he shifted his grip from her shoulders to the base of her neck. His lips were close enough to hers that he could feel the faint air of her breath brush across them. A few more centimeters and he would be able to taste his drug once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Preview:
> 
> "Do you three plan on standing around out here all day or can I get to my home?" Marinette and Alya jumped at the low Alto voice as it reached their ears. As they turned to view the girl who had spoken to them the meaning behind the word particular in Tikkis explanation of her filled their minds.


	5. Chapter 5

The sweet moment of their lips connecting without his mask, it was filled with such emotion as it burned its way into his mind. The kiss was the start of something more, something better that he could see stretching off into the future. His future with her would be full of moments just like that one, sweet and tender where he could show her just how much she meant to him without any need for words.

_Or, at least that's how it should have happened._

Adrien woke up just as he had every day that past week and groaned at the memory of what actually happened that came rushing back to him as it had every single day since that night.

* * *

_"I'm moving out soon," her whispered confession stopped him a mere hair away from doing what he had longed to do the entire night._

_"What?" He croaked as he took a step back from her._

_"W-well," she fidgeted with his jacket as she spoke, "I- I kn-know that me living with you secretly is hard on you, especially at school. I- I'm almost a l-legal adult and I um, I've been saving up some money. It's not much but, but I will be able to rent a flat for a, a month or two until I can find a j-job. I- it's better this way." There were tears in her eyes as she spoke, and the stinging sensation of them in his own eyes let him know that his matched her own as her words sank in. He stood in shocked silence as he tried to find the right words to make her decision go away._

_"Th-thank you for taking me in," she continued after he didn't speak for a long time, "a-and I hope that you will c-continue to employ my parents as well. They, they are good at what they do." With that she left him alone there on the balcony, only pausing to return his jacket before heading back into the crowded ballroom._

* * *

He slammed his fist against the marbled top of his bathrooms sink, breaking his barely used toothbrush in the process. With a sigh he tossed it into the waiting trash bin before grabbing another out of a nearby drawer. The day of her birthday, and the day she was planning to move out, was growing close far too quickly and he still hadn't thought of how to get her to stay.

"I'm hungry~" Plagg wines as he floated into his view from the direction of Marinettes room. He looked his flustered chosen over before giving in to a long drawn out yawn. Adrian had no time for the black cats complaints however, thus he rushed to snatch it out of the air.

"Come on Plagg, tell me something!" He ordered as he shook the Kwami roughly.

"Fine, fine." Plagg floated out of his grasp before continuing, "she's got half her stuff packed and ready to go. Everything she got while she's been living here hasn't been touched though." Adrien collapsed at his words, falling to his knees on the cold tiled floor.

"What did I do wrong?" He asked after the silence became too much for him to bear.

"Coming onto her as both Chat-Noir and Adrien Agreste may not have been the brightest idea of yours." Plagg offered, which only rewarded him an angry glare from his chosen.

"I just can't get her out of my head." He groaned.

"Hey, a little time apart won't hurt, and you'll still see her at school." His Kwami offered.

"Did you find out where she was planning on going?" He asked as he looked up at the small floating cat like being.

"Nope, not even a clue. That girl knows how to keep her secrets." In truth, Plagg knew exactly where she would be living but was under strict orders from Tikki not to tell him. Chat was not the only black cat who served his lady loyally.

"Dammit all!" Why can't she just stay here where I know she will be safe?!" Adrien nearly shouted his thoughts, which prompted his Kwami to shush him.

"It will be okay." Plagg purred against Adriens cheek in an attempt to soothe him.

* * *

Marinette stood nervously beside Alya as they looked up at the run down flat building before them. She was happy that her best friend had agreed to visit her new place with her, especially when she was visiting it for the first time herself. The taller girl took Marinette by the hand and gave it a gentle squeeze as she smiled at the fidgety girl beside her.

"Come on girl, let's go see who this mysterious new roommate of yours is and get you settled in."she offered as she gave her hand a gentle tug.

"I don't think there's much to worry about, Tikki said she could be trusted." Marinette offered softly.

"That's right," Tikki popped her head out of Marinettes purse as she spoke, "though she is a bit, particular."

"Particular?" Alya asked, Marinette shrugged as she looked up at her.

"It would be better if you just saw for yourself." Tikki sighed as she motioned for the girls to head inside. They solemnly followed her quiet orders and stepped through the paper covered glass double doors that stood before them.

"I'm just glad you're letting me see where you'll be living. I mean honestly girl, you gotta keep me in the loop." Alya stated as they climbed the staircase towards Marinettes flat, "I'm worried since we've never met the girl, I mean she could be a complete-" she cut her sentence short as they stepped up to her new front door. It was painted black with what seemed like graffiti spray painted over its surface, the exact opposite of the pristine white doors around it. A neon open sign was maimed to it, with its cord going between the door and its frame just above its middle hinge to slip into the room beyond.

"Wait, is that Tikki?" Marinette asked as she studied a red design located just under the glowing sign.

"I told you, she grew up around us, you won't have to hide who you are here." Tikki explained for the fourth time since they met up with Alya.

"Do you three plan on standing around out here all day or can I get to my home?" Marinette and Alya jumped at the low Alto voice as it reached their ears. As they turned to view the girl who had spoken to them the meaning behind the word particular in Tikkis explanation of her filled their minds.

She was tall, a good three inches taller than Alya, with short spikes black hair excluding the long thin braid that hung down in front of her right ear, it seemed to be held together with seven different colored beads at its tip. She wore baggy clothes that looked like they had been purchased off of a men's rack. Her shirt was a faded black color while her chain lined pants were a deep ocean blue. Hints of tattoos could be seen at the bottom of her shirt sleeves and around the loose neckline of it as well. She had too many piercings to count in her ears, three in each eyebrow, a stud in her nose, and finally a pair of shiny black miniature horns sticking out on either side of her mouth, just below her bottom lip. Her makeup was all blacks and blues, including her lips which were black with blue hints where the light bounced off of them.

She smirked slightly as the two girls stared her down and pulled out a keychain ridden door key before waving it before them slowly.

"I'm guessing the one with honorable Tikki in her purse is my new roommate. Sorry I'm late, I was just out gathering some house warming party supplies." She stated in that same strange alto voice as she pulled a cigarette from her pocket and lit it with a heavy looking lighter.

"Uh huh." Marinette squeaked at the intimidating girl.

"Cool," the girl replied as she exhaled a cloud of smoke off to one side, "im Chi Fang, you can call me Kid though. Everyone does." As if to emphasize her point she turned to show them a tattoo of the word KID stamped across the back of her neck.

"I'm not sure that the master would like that much." Tikkis voice was surprisingly stern as she spoke to the girl.

"What grandfather doesn't know won't hurt him." Kid chuckled as she stepped past them to open the door, "well, come on in. It's your house to now." She urged as she stood in the entrance with the door held open for them.

The interior perfectly fit the girl, dark with splashes of color and artwork on the walls ranging from Picasso prints to framed tattoo designs. There was a large t.v in the corner of the living room and a low coffee table between it and the two love seats that surrounded it. The kitchen was surprisingly untouched by the girls artistic taste, as well as the rest of the flat, except for a door at the end of the hall that was done up much the same way as the front door had been. Excluding the open sign of course. In its place was a street sign that was clearly ordered by her that said Fangs way, a play on words for feng shui.

"A few ground rules before we get started," kid sighed as she placed the bag of assorted liquor and snacks on the kitchen counter, "school comes first, I graduated so you have to to. I understand that you have other responsibilities but nothing is more important than your future. Don't touch any wet paintings and don't transform in the main room. You get the bedroom by the bathroom because it's got a big window that you can radially come and go from. That being said, if you are out past three AM I will lock the window and you will sleep on the roof. As long as you can keep your grades up and Paris is safe you don't have to worry about the rent."

"I like her momitude." Alya chuckled, which earned her a nudge from her best friends elbow.

"Friends are cool by the way, just don't do sleepovers on school nights." Kid added with a smirk.

"I like her more now." Alya was nudged once more, wincing this time at the slight pain it caused to bloom in her side.

* * *

Their conversation was cut short by the loud drowning of a buzzer. Marinettes new roommate waved away the girls confused expressions before moving to a box on the wall by the front door that was almost hidden by the paint that covered the wall. She pressed the button at the base of the box and leaned in to speak loudly into it.

"If you are looking for an appointment with Outshining Chameleons inc then you will have to go four buildings down the street. I do not work from home." Her voice was clear and stern as she spoke, clearly she had done this before.

"Um, sorry dude. I was looking for Marinette." Ninos voice echoed through their room, sounding uncomfortable and shy as it reached the girls ears. Kid waved her finger back and forth between them with her eyebrows raised slightly as he spoke. Marinette smiled sheepishly and nodded at the girl as she pointed up at herself.

"You a friend of hers?" Kid asked in her commanding and stern voice.

"Um, yes?" Was his shaky reply.

"What's your name kiddo?" Her voice was stern, but a wide grin had cut its way across her face as she stared down at the two girls who were fighting back a similar urge to smile.

"Uh Nino…" he replied as if he was unsure of his own words.

"Well, come on up Nino." Her voice broke into softer alto tones halfway through her response. The occupants of the room busted into fits of laughter as she released the intercom button. Alya leaned on Marinettes shoulder as she wiped a tear from her eyes.

"How did Nino know we were here?" Marinette asked after she had calmed down from her initial bouts of laughter.

"Oh girl, I texted him. Figured we could use the extra muscle to get you settled in." Alya stated matter-of-factly as she pulled out her phone to text the poor boy a moment later.

"More for the welcome party I guess," Kid stated as she moved past them and began pulling shot glasses from a cabinet above the kitchen counter.

"Are you a business owner?" Alya asked the girl as Marinette called the movers to make sure they were on their way with her things.

"You picked up on OC inc huh?" Kid gave her a devilish smile as she ran a long underused shot glass under the water from the sinks tap, "yeah, it's just a small tattoo parlor down the road. We let local artists sell their work in the front room but the place is more like a paid hangout for my old school friends and I."

"That sounds like squad goals." Alya jokingly stated.

"Yeah, well, I may seem old and mysterious but I can clearly remember my school days. I'm only twenty five after all." She smiled with a far away look in her eyes as she spoke, causing the dark skinned girl to see a bit of her softer side as she did so.

"Chi didn't have many friends in school until she came out of her shell in junior year, then there were five other kids at the masters house constantly." Tikki explained as she landed on Alyas shoulder.

"You were a shy kid huh?" Alya commented offhandedly and saw the ghost of a sad smile cross her face.

"You have no idea." She sighed softly as she opened a half empty bottle of vodka and poured it into the now clean shot glass. Alya could see Marinette being someone like her in the future, maybe not as dark or risqué as the girl, but with the same kind confidence. The same willingness to help anyone in need. The young reporter found herself growing fonder of the mysterious young woman with each passing moment.

* * *

A knock on the door had Tikki hiding in Marinettes purse once again and the three of them moving towards the door. Kid was the one who opened it, revealing the future DJ leaning forward, caught studying the artwork on the door. He grew flustered and began to look around him for help of any kind. He finally reached to the wall on his side of the door and yanked hard with both arms to pull whatever it was into the doorway with him, and into their line of sight.

_IT_  ended up being Adrien.

"Hi," he stated with a gentle smile, just in that moment a wolf whistle echoed through the room. Four pairs of eyes turned to Kid, who was fumbling with the large pocket of her jeans.

"Ringtone." She stated as she pulled out what seemed to be an anchient flip phone and scanned over the message on her screen, "alrighty then," she sighed as she returned the phone to her pocket and moved to grab a rather large duffle bag by the leftmost loveseat before turning to glance at the four teens, "I gotta go fix a problem that Jacko made, just don't burn the place down okay?" She aimed her words directly at Marinette who squeaked and nodded in response.

"Good." She smiled as she ruffled the young designers hair, "oh, and don't touch lamb lamb." She added as she motioned to a stuffed lamb sitting on the table between the two loveseats. It was covered in straight pins with different colored orbs at their tips, "he needs rehab." She finished in a loud fake whisper before sliding past the dumbfounded boys and down the hallway towards the stairs.

"That's your roommate?!" Nino asked in shock once the two boys were safely inside the flat and the front door was closed. The girls smiled as Marinette nodded and motioned to the loveseats to offer them a place to sit.

"What is Adrien doing here?" She whispered to Alya quickly once the two girls were in the small kitchen and out of earshot of the boys.

"I guess Nino called him for a bit of extra help." The bespeckled girl shrugged as she spoke. The girls moved to lean against the small kitchens counter as the sounds of the boys pointing out things they saw around the room reached their ears. Marinette was only against the counter for a moment however before she pushed herself away from it and paced nervously around the small room while her eyes jumped from looking at the floor to looking at the back of Adriens golden blonde hair. Alyas brows furrowed as she studied the nervous, fidgety dark haired girl.

"What is so wrong with him being here?" Alya finally asked when she could stand no more of the nervous girls antics.

"I can't take advantage of his kindness anymore Alya! I spent a month living off him and he never complained once but I could see something changing in him. He's, he has been acting strangely around me and I just couldn't let him suffer more because I was around him all the time." Marinette was near tears as she spoke but Alya was only able to focus on one aspect of her brief explanation.

"Wait, Maribug, did you live with Adrien this whole time?" She asked in a hushed small voice. Marinette looked like a deer caught in the headlights as she nodded slowly in response to her best friends question.

" _ADRIEN AGRESTE_!" Alyas voice could have woken the dead as she called out the blondes name angrily.

"No, Alya, shhh, no don't."

" _ADRIEN FUCKING AGRESTE_!" It was far too late for her to stop her best friend who was marching her way, practically fuming with anger, towards the panic stricken blonde. Marinette chased her, grabbing her by the arm and attempting to stop her progression towards the boys.

"Alya what-" by the time the words had left Ninos lips Alya had already snatched his best friend up by the shirt collar and was glaring daggers into the poor boys emerald eyes.

"How DARE you take my poor little Maribug into your, your fuck den and make her feel guilty for living there." Her voice was laced with poison as she pulled him closer to illustrate her point. Marinettes face turned a very deep shade of red that was only matched by the face of the blonde in her hands.

"F-fuck den? What the hell are you saying Alya?!" Adrien sputtered as he tried not to look at the dark haired girl behind the demon that had to have taken over Alya in that moment.

"Alya! It wasn't l-l-like th-that!" Marinette spoke up in a squeaky voice as she covered her face with her hands, "we never did anything like that. I swear." Her muffled voice was faint but the others could make out every word.

"I never touched her like that!" Adrien added as he raised his hands in a surrendering position. Alyas eyes narrowed as she looked between the two of them, her gaze notibly softening as she caught Marinette in it.

"Then why the hell are you acting like this girl?" She asked gently with Adrien still held roughly in her grasp.

"I would like to know that as well." The blonde added as he glanced at the dark haired girl with a worried frown on his face.

"You were too nice to me the whole time! You, you and your father were paying my parents for us to live with you and, and you even sent Chat-Noir after me. Then you started acting different, you wouldn't look at me and you avoided me even at school." She surprised herself the most by getting through it with the bare minimum amount of stammering and stumbling over her words.

"You were the one who didn't want anyone to know that we were living together." He stated sadly as Alya released him, "I was just trying to do what you wanted."

"I never wanted to take advantage of you." She found that talking to him with her hands over her eyes was easier than when she looked at him directly.

"You never did." He looked warily at Alya as he moved around the loveseats to stand before Marinette, "I wanted you there because I care about you and wanted to know you were safe. I would do the same thing for Alya or Nino." He added the last part as she took a step back from him.

"That's still taking advantage of your kindness." She mumbled through her hands. He sighed and looked around the small space around them, looking for some way to tell her how wrong she really was about the situation. His eyes landed on the still opened bottle of vodka and his body made a bee line to snatch it up off the counter. He made his way back to her side and faced down their two best friends.

"We need to talk about a lot of things, obviously, so do you guys mind if I take Marinette into her room for a moment?" He didn't know why, but somehow he felt as if he was asking her parents for her hand. The weight that this put on his chest was nearly unbearable.

"Sure dude." Nino stated as Alya huffed angrily.

"If I hear one sob from her you're dead Agreste." Alya warned after staring him down for an uncomfortably long time.

"Understood." He stated as he grabbed Marinette by the wrist with his free hand. He lead her down the hall to her nearly empty bedroom before she could protest and shut the door calmly behind himself. It was all a show of course, he had to appear calm to keep her calm long enough for him to clear the air between them.

"Adrien?" Her voice was soft and scared, letting him know that he was already walking a very thin line with her.

"Some ground rules," he stated without looking at her just yet, "this," he held the vodka up for her to see, "is only to make talking easier. I am not trying to get you drunk. We are going to stay in this room until everything is out in the open. You won't run away from me," his voice cracked as he leaned his head against her door, "not again." He added softly before taking a quick drink from the bottle.

"Okay." When she finally spoke he turned to face her, "but can I have th-the bottle for a- a second?" He complied with her request and smiled at how cute her face was when it scrunched up at the taste of the liquid.

* * *

They both took a few more drinks from the bottle and sat before one another in the floor with the not so slowly emptying bottle between them. Her cheeks were growing rosy and her hands were not as fidgety as they were when they had first sat down, she was becoming a bit buzzed at this point so he attempted to limit her intake by drinking more himself, she couldn't drink if the bottle was empty right? Vodka was a harsh drink when taken straight and, though he had grown more and more use to them over the past few months, he didn't want his dear princess to suffer a hangover the next morning.

"I couldn't handle living off of you, it made me feel dirty and underhanded." She surprised him by starting the conversation that he was trying to think of a way to begin. She eyed the bottle when he did not respond out of shock before continuing, "you're so amazing, handsome, and intelligent. You are so much more even outside of your fathers company and it's so intimidating to be around you. Because on top of it all you are just so kind to everyone." She looked up at him through her eyelashes as she spoke and he could feel himself falling for her all over again.

"I want to kiss you." He shocked even himself with his words.

"W-what?" Her voice raised slightly as her eyes widened.

"Like a lot, all the time." He continued his confession as he stared down at the bottle, a shy blushing his cheeks. Marinette pulled her knees up to her chest and looked at him as if she was waiting for him to laugh at the cruel joke that he had to be playing on her. His heart sank as the memory of the first day he met her popped into his mind. She had looked at him in the same way while he was trying to peel the gum, which Chloe ordered Sabrina to stick on her seat, away so that there would be no problems on his first day. She had mistook it as him placing the gum there himself because at the time Chloe was his only friend.

"You don't mean that." She mumbled, bringing him back into reality as she looked down at her sock covered feet.

"Try me." He scoffed, his Chat showed through when he was drunk. She shook her head and looked to her side rather than risk meeting his eyes. If she had she would have seen the intensity behind his gaze.

"I don't think that we should be talking about this." She mumbled as she began to trace swirls in the carpet beside her. His brow furrowed as he watched her timid movements, his alcohol ridden brain scrambling to figure out why.

"Why not?" He winced at his own words, _is that really all he could think of?_

"Because, I really like you a lot but," she looked over at her large bedroom window rather than at him as she spoke, "but um, there is, there is another guy and ah, I don't," she sighed and hung her head, "I don't know anymore." He saw red as her words registered in his mind and before she could react he had thrown himself over the bottle, knocking it over in the process, to land on top of her clumsily. She fell back as he braced himself with his arms; they ended up with her on her back staring up at him with wide eyes as he hovered above her with his nose just a few inches from her own. He couldn't focus on their positioning as his mind whirled around one single question over and over again.

_Who is he?_

_Who is the bastard that's trying to take my princess away from me?_

"Who?" He growled as he leaned closer to her. She squeaked and covered her face with her hands in reaction to his strange actions.

"It doesn't matter," her muffled voice reached him, "there's no way you know him and it was just a stupid kiss and I don't know."

"He kissed you?" He could feel himself growing angrier with each word of his short question.

"Yes, and, I don't know, I Liked It. Then you, you are you and you're amazing and I, and I'm confused." She practically wined the words.

"You liked it?" He squeaked, taken aback by her words. Who else had been kissing her and made her like it?

"Yes?" Her soft unsure response was so adorable that he felt his heart melting.

"That's not fair." He stated as his eyes zoned in on her bottom lip when the movement of her tongue across it caught his attention.

"What?" She asked softly.

"You haven't let me have a chance." He whispered softly as he leaned down towards her once again. His lips brushed against hers lightly and he felt her body shudder under him. It was far too late for him to stop now and he found himself pressing against her as he deepened the kiss, reaching his right hand up to cup her cheek as she tilted her head to the side and opened her lips slightly. He needed no more invitation than that as he flicked his tongue out to gently trace her lips before slowly plunging it into the warm cavern of her mouth.

This was the best way he could think of to enjoy his drug, slow and steady he took in every sweet and bitter flavor of her. Her own tongue tentatively rubbed against his and he could feel electricity shoot down his body, causing his pants to become uncomfortably tight and his knees to become weak. He groaned softly into the kiss and slipped his right hand up to grasp ahold of her hair as her hands found their way to his shirt and curled into fists around the material. She returned his lust filled skin with a breathy moan that only made him need more of her. Both his hands were on her head now, with his weight supported only by his elbows and his shoulders hunched as he attempted to press her that much closer to himself.

"Marinette." His husky whisper shook her to her core.

"Chat." Her voice was filled with just as much lust as he felt for her as she spoke, however the actual name she called out caused both of them to stop and stare at each other with widened eyes. He slowly pushed himself off of her as his face scrunched up with held back laughter. Tears brimmed her eyes as he sat back on the vodka soaked carpet. She had to force herself to push her body up into a sitting position, but no matter how hard she tried she couldn't bring herself to look at him.

"Is, is that the g-guy?" His voice cracked with held back laughter, to her it sounded as if he was about to cry.

"Yes." She answered honestly. He could feel Plagg move against his side which did not help with his need to release his laughter. Covering his mouth with his hand, he looked away from her as the weight on his chest evaporated instantly. When he could hold it back no more he threw his head back and let the laughter ripple out from him.

Her eyes nearly popped out of her skull as she watched him, guilt washing through her like waves as she went over and over in her mind what had happened. Adrien had kissed her, something that she had dreamed about for years, but he was just so strikingly similar to Chat in his actions that the black clad super hero took over her thoughts. Even the taste was the same, exempting the bitter vodka undertones that seemed to multiply as their kiss deepened. Even his hands felt the same as they ran through her hair, and made her mind whirl in the same way that Chats had. She pondered for a moment if she would feel any different if she just kissed anyone before the guilt of what she had done rushed through her in another wave.

"Adrien?" She asked cautiously as he calmed down. He waved his hands between them as a few more chuckles echoed in her ears.

"It's just," he lost to another round of chuckles, "how many people have you kissed?"

"Now?"

"Yes."

"Two." She looked down as she answered his question.

_Just you_ , a tiny voice called out in his mind.

"Do you wanna go out, like on a date, with me?" His question shocked her into silence for a moment as her eyes jumped from his face to her hands a few times. She was clearly confused about the situation. He moved then to sit beside her and propped himself up on his arms, one positioned behind her back as he did so, "you know," he added after a long silence stretched between them, "I don't feel bad being compared to a super hero, but I would like the opportunity to let you get to know me. He may have been your first kiss but I want to be something more." He nudged her a bit with his elbow as he spoke and gave her a sideways smile, "it's not like you're secretly dating right?"

"I guess not. He told me the kiss was our secret." She mumbled without looking up at him.

"So, what do you say?" He asked as the nervousness that rushed through him had his arms shaking.

"What?" Her voice was a tiny squeak. His smile softened as he reached up to turn her head to face him.

"Will you go out with me?" He asked in a low husky whisper. She bit her bottom lip as her eyes locked onto his own kiss swollen ones. She nodded slowly, too afraid to voice her answer and break the moment that she had always dreamed of having with him. A large goofy grin spread across his face as he pulled her in to gently press her lips against his once again.

* * *

Kid stepped into her now shared flat and eyed the two dark skinned teens that hovered next to her new roommates bedroom door as her eyebrow raised slowly with curiosity. She chuckled and shook her head as she placed her duffle bag near her usual loveseat. The other two teens were supposedly on the other side of the door doing things she could only guess at.

"Teenagers." She chuckled as she reached for the vodka she had left on the counter, only to laugh loudly as her hand passed through thin air, "oh teenagers." She shook her head as she sighed the words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The OC Kid is the first OC I have written that is not a main character, she is also the first OC that I have based off of myself. I plan to make her a older sister type for Marinette as well as the holder of the turtle miraculous when her grandfather (the master) dies. I know it is sort of a spoiler but it still may not happen so anything is possible at this point. Please review and let me know if I am still doing well or if I've messed something up so I can fix it.
> 
> Preview:
> 
> "Everything seems to be the same between you two." Alya had shocked her, causing her shy smile to slip as she jumped away from her best friend and screamed in surprise.
> 
> "You can't just sneak up on me!" She exclaimed.
> 
> "Actually I think anyone should have been able to sneak up on you while you were off in lala land." Her friend chuckled as she draped her arm over Marinettes shoulder, "how'd you manage to come to school early?" She asked as she gave the smaller girl a gentle squeeze with her arm.


	6. Chapter 6

"Who is that?"

"Is that her boyfriend?"

"Who comes to school on a motorcycle?"

"You feeling okay enough for school?" Marinette just nodded at Kid as she slipped off of the high back of the older girls bike. She shouldered her bag and stared down at her feet as her roommate reached into one of the black leather side bags and pulled out a black painted metal box that had splashes of color near the top and around the sides, "sorry if it smells like paint, the boys wanted to pack lunch for their 'lil sis'" she smiled with a wink as Marinette accepted the box. Without her makeup and with her baggy clothes and dark combat boots, Kid looked a lot like a guy so it was easy to see why everyone around them were openly gossiping about the two of them being together.

"Hey," Kid flicked Marinettes forehead softly to get her attention, "have a good day and tell Alya I said hi." She smiled as she once again gave her a quick wink and a wave before driving down the road and leaving Marinette there to deal with the sudden rumors alone.

"Who was that?" Chloe demanded as she, Kim, and Sabrina made their way over to her.

"Who Kid? My um, roommate. I uh, moved out of my parents place yesterday." Marinette mumbled halfway through her last sentence.

"Kid likes like a bad kind of guy. Don't let him make you do anything that you don't want to do." Kim spoke up as he waved to Max who was approaching the small group slowly.

"N-no it's not like that! Kid is a-"

"Nice guy?" Chloe scoffed, "no one who dresses like that is a nice guy." She crossed her arms as her red headed best friend nodded vigorously in agreement.

"No! You aren't listening to me! Kid is a-"

"Adrikins!" Chloe ignored Marinettes protests as she shoved past the blackette to rush to the blonde model who had just stepped out of the sleek black car behind Marinette.

"Hi Chlo- what's up?" Marinettes face flared a bright red at the sound of his voice and she instinctively reached up to touch her lips only to hit herself with the hard metal handle of the lunch box she had been handed. She winced and hissed in pain before sucking her injured bottom in hopes of relieving the pain a bit. She covered her mouth with her free hand this time as she turned to glance towards Adrien. He was standing right where he had been once stepping out of the car, laughing at something Kim had said as he attempted to politely pry Chloe off of his arm. As if he sensed her staring at him he turned his head towards her and flashed a bright smile as his hand that had been working on freeing himself moved up to give her a gentle wave.

"Everything seems to be the same between you two." Alya had shocked her, causing her shy smile to slip as she jumped away from her best friend and screamed in surprise.

"You can't just sneak up on me!" She exclaimed.

"Actually I think anyone should have been able to sneak up on you while you were off in lala land." Her friend chuckled as she draped her arm over Marinettes shoulder, "how'd you manage to come to school early?" She asked as she gave the smaller girl a gentle squeeze with her arm.

"Kid dropped me off, she said she had to go get some supplies for the shop and since she only trust one supplier and it was on the way she decided to just drop me off at school." Marinette sighed heavily after explaining this to her friend, "but now everyone around here thinks that she's my boyfriend." Alya laughed loudly enough for the group around Adrien to glance towards the two girls. Marinette blushed as his bright green eyes locked onto her face.

"L-let's just go to class." She mumbled as she turned away from the stares, "I don't want Chloe to make a scene if, if she finds out what happened."

"Oh, about what happened with your boyfriend?" Alya asked a bit too loudly. Marinette looked down quickly as her face grew hotter, too quickly to notice Adrien doing the same thing. She moved towards the school with her best friend following swiftly behind her, giggling lightly all the way at the reaction that she had stirred within both Marinette and the blonde model that was still being bombarded by his fans within the school.

* * *

Their class started out being the same as any other, Marinette sat beside Aly who sat behind Nino who sat beside Adrien who sat in front of Marinette. She pondered the seating placement changing in the near future and how a certain spoiled blonde would react to it if that happened through their morning announcements and through most of their first class. It was a busy day so she was not able to pull him aside and ask about the specifics of the date he had asked her on the night before; was it even still on the table since she didn't exactly answer him when he asked that question? Where they really a couple now or did she dream the whole thing? He certainly didn't act any different that day, he was the same Adrien as he had been before she moved in and then out of his home. Kind but not getting to close to her and only shooting her a sweet smile when she was forced by Alya to speak to the two boys. She was ready to give up and consider their exchange the day before as another one of her many dreams about him, until she was leaving the classroom for lunch that is.

"Marinette," she jumped and turned to face him as his warm hand landed lightly on her shoulder. She turned to him to see a sheepish smile on his face as his few hand scratched at the back of his neck, "I'm uh, free this Saturday if you wanted to go to a movie or something?" He tried to make it seem like a suggestion but his nervousness came through at the end and it caused his words to come out in the form of a question. Her face bloomed a bright red stain and she looked down at the books in her hands as she smiled sweetly at his words.

"I-I'm free Saturday." She murdered without looking up at him, "that is if y-your s-sure about going?" She fiddled with the spine of her history book as she spoke and he couldn't help but let out a small chuckle.

"I asked you remember." He patted her head gently and turned to look at Nino and Alya as he spoke, "should we invite them? Or do you want it just to be the two of us."

"We have to invite them!" She exclaimed a split second after he finished his question, "I-I mean they've been s-so helpful to me, us, and, and it's not really fair to them for us to go have fun alone. Not that I don't want to be alone with you, not that I p-plan on being alone with you or think about it a lot. I mean of course I thought about it but-"

"Marinette, you're rambling." He chuckled as he leaned towards her, reaching up to move a stray hair behind her ear and causing a sweet shock to run down her spine as he did so, "I'll go ask them. Text you later okay?"

"O-okay." She waved at his back as he strode over to greet Nino. A smile crept across her face as she watched the two boys interacting, then Alya joining into their conversation with a large smile across her own lips.

_BZZZZZZZZ_

She jumped as her phone vibrated against her hip. She fumbled with it in her pocket for a bit before managing to wiggle it from the pink denim and clicked open the message icon on her screen.

**CHI-**

_Hey girl I'm on my way to pick you up. Boys saw your sketchbook on the table and decided to get you some fabrics. Figured you could put up some clothes in the front room and grab so extra $$ if you want._

She smiled at the message, Kid was sweet and 'the boys' as she called them, mainly the short haired blonde named Jacko, were just as nice to her. They were the kind of people you would avoid on the street at first glance yet you couldn't think of anyone better once you took the time to get to know them. Jacko had a knack for cooking and Kid had nurturing side that made up for the fact that the only edible thing she could make consisted of milk and cereal.

**Mari-**

_You guys are too sweet. I would love to host my designs in your building. Though Idk how good they will turn out._

**Chi-**

_Hey don't worry. Just relax and make them at your pace. They will b awesome._

She only glanced up from her phone long enough to see Alya happily motioning towards her as she spoke. She could feel her cheeks warming once again as her mind searched for what they could possibly be talking about, they couldn't still be discussing whether or not the dark skinned couple would attend the date with them right?

_Date._

_A date with Adrian._

She still couldn't wrap her head around the though of dating the blonde model. For years it had just been a daydream of hers to be in that sort of relationship with him, an unattainable dream at that, yet now he was the one that acted first and asked her to go out with him. She had a full night to think about it and it still seemed impossible, like a very vivid dream that she would be waking up from any minute now.

* * *

"See, her boy toy is waiting on her out front again." Chloe laughed in the way that only she could as she and Sabrina stood at the top of the stairs leading into the school. They watched as Sabrina recorded, Marinette slipping onto the back of the black clad figures bike with a smile on her face as she said something quickly that the person nodded to slowly with their Helmeted head. The two were waiting for Adrian to show him the strange new development in the klutzy girls life, Chloe practically bouncing in place at the thought of having one less rival after Adriana heart to deal with. The object of her affection was in the blondes view as well, she studied him talking to his best friend just inside the door through her compact mirror.

"I thought we could go to a movie but Alya said that was too intimate for our date so maybe a boat ride or a trip to the Louvre."

"I dunno dude, you don't wanna bore her."

"I guess, but then where should we go?"

"We'll figure it out, we have 'til Saturday to figure it out." Chloe's heart fluttered at the thought, her Adrikins was planning on asking her on a date on Saturday. She could just squeal in excitement at the thought, but settled for a knowing smirk instead as she watched the boys turn to approach her before putting the small mirror away in her purse.

"Hi Adrikins!" She called just a second before wrapping bough her arms around just his left one.

"Oh, hey Chloe." He mumbled as his brows furrowed at their conjoined limbs. She pressed herself closer to him as she smiled up at his face wile looking at him through her eyelashes.

"I just want to let you know that I am totally free for anything this weekend." She smirked as she watched him jump in surprise at her words.

"Uh, that's good to know Chloe." He smiled and patted her shoulder sweetly before ushering Nino to the car that was waiting for him. She watched them climb in after they both laughed at something that the bespeckled boy said. She huffed and crossed her arms as she leaned against a pillar near the stairs and watched the car pull away.

"He's probably planning on asking me out in a big way." She told Sabrina after the car was out of sight, "I need to go get myself ready to accept his request as if it took me by surprise." She grabbed her best friends arm with a wide smile on her face, "come on, lets go shopping!"

* * *

Adrien stepped into his home followed swiftly by Nino, he had already called his father and left a message letting him know the other boy was going to study with him that day so he wasn't too worried about getting in trouble for having him there. However he was worried about how Nino would react to seeing the young designers parents, he already knew that Marinette lived with him for a short time but her parents had not been brought up at all during the confusion of before. He did not have long to worry over this however, for as soon as the door closed behind them and allowed a hollow thud to resound in the large front room of his home her mother appeared at the bottom of the stairs with a plate of fresh sandwiches for them and a large smile on her face.

"Hello boys, how was school? Did Marinette make it to class in time?" She asked as Nino practically slipped up to her to accept the free food.

"She was early actually, that roommate of hers doesn't seem to play around when it comes to school." Adrien was visibly shocked by Ninos lack of surprise when he first saw Mrs. Dupain-Chang, and even more so when his friend spoke about Marinettes mysterious roommate like her mother would even know she existed.

"Oh thank goodness, I worried she would drop out of school after she decided to live on her own." The boys watched her sigh in relief before she smiled up at them, "but who is this roommate? Not a boy I hope."

"No it's a girl. If it was a boy I doubt she would have decided to stay rather than coming back home." Adrian stated quickly, which caused his cheeks to turn a strawberry red as the other two turned to look at him.

"Dude, you just-"

"I know what I said." Adrien cut Nino off quickly before stepping past the stunned woman, "we'll be in my room studying." He told her quickly without looking up from the floor before his feet.

"I'll tell Tom to make something good for your dinner to help you absorb the lessons." She stated with a sweet smile as Nino grabbed yet another sandwich from her.

"Thanks Mrs. D.C. " The dark skinned boy gave her a small wave before rushing after his best friend so he would not get lost within the halls of the large house. Adrien had switched rooms months before, moving to an even larger room to make space for his growing collection of books, movies, and games that lined his walls on large oak bookshelves, custom made to fit from the wall near the hall to the line of large windows that mimicked his old bedroom's.

"Woah." Nino stated as he took it all in. Adrien scratched the back of his neck as he nervously chuckled at his friends reaction, of course it was awkward for him to see the future DJ acting like this just by stepping into what he essentially saw as a storage room with a bed. He never liked being alone in the room for long, even just with Plagg was becoming more and more unbearable by the day as the small Kwami became more and more of a pest. He begged for cheese constantly now that he did not have to worry about a certain pigtailed girl walking in on his meal.

"Uh, we should probably start studying for the history exam and we can tackle physics after dinner okay?" He asked as he moved to sit by the large desk near his windows. He motioned to a homing chair by his large tv and watched as Nino pulled it over to sit across from him.

"Are you sure you wanna study when we have something far better to do?" Nino asked as he reached into his pocket for his phone.

"What are you-" Adrien was cut off by the other boys phone being shoved nearly against his face, the text between Nino and Alya pulled up on his screen and close enough to the blonde that he could read it clearly.

**Alya-**

_Marinette is so psyched about Saturday! She said she's making her own outfit for it but won't tell me what._

Adrien could feel his face warming as he thought of what she would possibly wear on Saturday, _would it be a custom dress or a full outfit designed with him in mind?_  He didn't think he could stand waiting an entire four days to find out.

"What did you two have in mind?" He asked after coughing into his hand to clear the lump that had grown in his throat.

"One word, arcade."

* * *

Marinette was growing less and less patient with the growing number of boys that were constantly around her, especially in her own flat. She soon learned that Kid and her group of friends had a secret code with the buzzer which consisted of one short buzz, four quick buzzes close together, then two short buzzes a second apart from one another. The sound began to irritate her after about the fourth time hearing it;

_Bzzz bzzzbzzzbzzzbuzz buzz… bzzz_

She slammed her sketchbook down on her lap and shot an angry glare through the wall in the general direction of their front door.

"Kevos here." Kid stated loudly as she stepped out of her bedroom where the group had been congregating and walked past Marinettes open door. Kevin was the fifth of the group of boys who her roommate worked with every day. There was him, Jacko ( _the one who made mistakes because he was still an apprentice_ ), Chrissy Chris ( _Kevos cousin who seemed more like a brother to him than anything)_ , Vince ( _a laid back piercing artist Kid had once had a crush on_ ), and Vinny ( _Vince's little brother, Marinette assumed their parents liked the letter V a lot_ ). When all six of them were in the apartment it became loud and hard for her to concentrate, so with a polite goodbye called to them through the door and a curious glance at the gaming set up Kid had in her room she left the apartment. Her intention was to go to the Eiffel Tower to find some sort of inspiration for a sundress that she planned on wearing that Saturday, however she found herself wondering around the park near her school by the time she pulled herself out of her own mind.

She placed her head in her hands as she sat on a park bench and groaned loudly as her mind drew blanks for the dress design. She had not felt this uninspired in a long time and the dull weight that seemed to rest across her head as she forced herself to think was not helping her artistic flow.

"Marinette?" She jumped at the sound of her name and looked up to see a tall slender boy with bright red hair that hung over one eye. His uncovered eye shone a bright blue in the late afternoon light as he looked down at her, "h-hey, what are you doing out here alone?" He asked as he shifted his own sketchbook in his arms. She smiled at him and held up her own book for him to inspect the very dull design she had sketched on a page close to the middle.

"Inspiration isn't with me. I thought a change of scenery might help but it's not." She answered him honestly as he studied her work.

"I think I could help, if you want that is. I have some sketches at my place you could look over." He suggested after a silent moment where she thought over how lame her piece really looked.

"You would do that for me?" She asked as she pulled her book against her chest.

"Of course um, let me grab them and we can go to a café and get a bite to eat while you look through them." He looked up at her nervously as she stood but she did not notice this. She followed him out of the park then with a bright smile on her face as the memory of why she left her flat in the first place vanished from her mind to be replaced by the hopeful thoughts of how his work might inspire her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Preview:
> 
>  
> 
> "I'm sorry for earlier," Nathaniel stated as they stepped out of the café a little while later, "I got worked up over nothing because everyone was saying you were with some bad boy biker who had you move in with him so he could take advantage of you." She smiled and patted his arm gently as he adjusted his portfolio in his hands.


	7. Chapter 7

"Wow," Marinette breathed as she lifted up a sketch of a beautiful dragon to reveal an illustration of herself and the Evillustraitor kissing. Her face burned a dark red as she looked over at her half eaten pancakes rather than studying the image before her, "you uh, you're a great artist Nate." The red head sitting across from her chuckled nervously and snatched the picture from the pile. She noticed but did not comment on the fact that his face matched his hair as he folded it and tucked it carefully into his shirt pocket. They had been deep in conversation before yet now their booth was deathly quiet as she carefully looked through the rest of his artwork. She did not look up at him as she skimmed through image after image while her mind raced around how she could tell him she was only going to see him as a friend without dealing with another Akuma.

"I know that you have a boyfriend now, I saw you two together at school." He began, causing her to blush a bit harder as she wondered if she and Adrien were that obvious in class, "but you know, he doesn't seem like a good guy for you and if her ever does anything that could or does hurt you I'm here to lend a shoulder and an ear to you anytime." She almost coughed up the bite of pancake she had just swallowed. How could anyone think that Adrien would hurt her, accidentally or otherwise.

"W-what?" She croaked as she tried to swallow down the lump of pancake with her cup of caramel macchiato without chalking on it.

"I mean honestly Mari, the dude drives a motorcycle." He stated as he slapped his hand on the table, causing the dark roast in his own cup to jump and nearly spill out onto his plate.

"What?"

"You know, the guy with the bike and the leathers, he dropped you off at school today!" He was nearly shouting at this point.

"Motorcycle, dropped me o- oh." She held back laughter as realization struck her, "oh no. No, no, no. Kid is just my roommate, and a girl by the way." She stated as she rolled her eyes.

"That was a girl?" He asked as he sat there with a stunned expression on his face.

"Oh yeah, she just prefers looking like a guy. She works with five of them so I guess it's just easier for her that way." She sighed as her laughter died away. The awkward moment was forgotten as the two teens settled into an easy conversation about art once again.

"I'm sorry for earlier," Nathaniel stated as they stepped out of the café a little while later, "I got worked up over nothing because everyone was saying you were with some bad boy biker who had you move in with him so he could take advantage of you." She smiled and patted his arm gently as he adjusted his portfolio in his hands.

"It's okay, honestly. I'm just glad I could clear up this misunderstanding. I hope the rumors can be corrected soon." She sighed as she shook her head, "honestly they made school life a bit difficult for me."

"I'll help you with that!" He said a bit loudly and promptly coughed into his hand, "I- I mean I would hate to see someone as nice and pretty as you get hurt by a misunderstanding."

"Thank you." She nearly whispered the words as she looked down at her own sketchbook clutched tightly in both of her hands. She jumped a bit as his fingers wrapped around her chin and forced her to look up at him.

"No need to thank me." His voice was soft as his eyes looked into hers, "I'm always there for you Marinette, always." He was leaning towards her then, his eyes going half lidded as they looked down at her lips. Her heart pounded in her ears as fear rushed through her bloodstream. He was trying to kiss her, which meant that he still liked her, which meant he thought that what they had just done was what, a date? No, no she couldn't let him do this! She had to move, had to get away from him and go home where she could safely say her love for Adrien was not in question.

"N-no! Nate, stop!" She managed to call out around his firm grip on her face. Her book laden hands shot out to stop him only to be crushed between the two of them as he closed the gap that separated him from her. She could feel his breath on her lips as her eyes shut tightly and she attempted to wiggle out of the arm he had snaked around her waist.

No!

Suddenly there was another pair of arms that found her way around her and she was being pulled away from Nathaniel and her body was placed against the wall of the café, her face was pressed against the cool stone so that she could not see who her rescuer was. With her heart still pounding in her ears, she silently thanked whoever saved her from the situation she had found herself in.

"While this is a purrfect night, I wouldn't recommend you putting your paws on another mans woman. That could be a catastrophe that would not end well for you." She instantly recognized the voice as belonging to a black clad pun machine.

She wanted to groan.

She wanted to cry.

She wanted to hug him.

She wanted to run away and hide.

"Chat-Noir?" Her suspicions were confirmed by Nates stunned question, "what, why are you here?"

"Why wouldn't I be? Clearly the purrincess needed a helping claw from her favorite black knight." She turned then to see Chat standing between her and Nate, his back was facing her but she could still see just how tense his body was. She hoped he wasn't there to do what they had done before, Adrien told him about them. Right?

"What, no, she doesn't need any rescuing. We were just hanging out and I- she doesn't even have a boyfriend! Turns out it's her roommate, a girl." Nathaniel stammered as the blonde hero crossed his arms and stared him down.

"That's where your wrong." Chats voice dropped from its usual carefree tone to a very serious one, "you made a big mistake coming on to my princess. One that won't be forgiven."

"Your-" the red head turned his attention to Marinette who was looking between the two with wide frightened eyes, "you're dating Chat-Noir?" He scoffed and shook his head, "should have figured," he added after a brief moment of silence, "he ruined our first date after all."

"No, it's not like that! Chat and I are friends, only friends." She shoved her way in between the two of them as she practically shouted the words. Nates eyes squinted as he glared up into the eyes of the blonde. The red heads lips pulled up into a smirk, that just oozes with 'I won this,' as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Like I said Mari, you can come talk to me about anything at anytime. I don't hide behind a mask like some people." He looked pointedly at Chat as he said the last two words and looked like he would burst out laughing when the blonde yanked her from his grasp. She was placed behind Chat once again as he stepped up to the slightly shorter red head.

"You need to listen to me carefully, I will protect her with my life from anything and anyone." He growled the words as he spoke, "I am watching over her at all times, and I would really hate for a cataclysm to befall a civilian." As he spoke the name of his power his right hand bubbled forth with the telltale sign it had been activated. He carefully reached out to the other male and snatched the folded up piece of paper from his shirt pocket. He held it up so his opponent could watch it disintegrate in his hand, "you understand what I'm saying, correct?" His cocky tone was back as he asked the question.

"And who do you think will be there to protect her from you?" Nate asked as his eyes and voice flashed with anger and hatred. She could feel the tension between the two coming to an climax and feared that a fight was about to break out right there in front of the café.

"W-wait!" She cried out as she snatched Chat by the arm and pulled him away from the other male, "t-this is just silly guys. I, I am your friend, both of you are my friends and, and I don't want you to do anything you will regret later." She hated how much she was stammering but the two of them had her so flustered that she just couldn't stand it, "n-now, let's all go to our own homes and, and forget tonight ever happened okay?" She held tight to Chats arm as she spoke, "Nate, thank you for tonight, but I think you should go first, I- I have some things to talk about with Chat."

"But Marinette, I don't-"

"Please," she cut him off before he could finish, "I'll see you at school okay?"

"Okay. " he finally sighed after having a short stare down with Chat, "Marinette, be careful." He added before turning and walking away with his head tilted forward. She didn't have to look up to know that Chat was smiling like a madman, but she did anyway. Her face fell into a frown as she poked him hard in the chest.

"First of all," she said sternly, "I will have you know that I am with Adrien now so you don't have any right to go around calling me yours. Secondly," her voice and eyes softened as she continued, "thank you for butting in, I don't know if I could have gotten myself out of that and I don't think I could have faced the love of my life ever again if he would have actually kissed me." She chances a look at his face after speaking and was met by a gentle smile and eyes that were full of love.

"The love of your life huh?" He asked as he nervously scratched the back of his neck. When she nodded in answer his shoulders visibly relaxed, "well then, all the more reason for me to walk you home. He and I, we're close, and I wouldn't want anything to happen to the love of his life." He offered her his arm as his words caused a deep red stain to form on her cheeks.

"I wouldn't go so far as to say that." She mumbled as she accepted his offer.

"Hmmm, whys that?" He asked as she turned them towards her home.

"Because, I've loved him for a long time. Ever since he loaned me his umbrella in freshman year."

"That long huh?" He asked, cutting her story off as he did so.

"Yes, now shush. I really need to say this to someone." She jabbed his side with her elbow playfully as she shot him a half hearted glare.

"Ma'am yes ma'am." He chuckled as they turned the corner at the end of the street.

"Alright." She let out a soft sigh and shook her head as she gathered her thoughts, "I- I thought it was just a shallow crush at first because of his dad and how I had always imagined working for him but, but as time went on I discovered more about him and the strong magnetic feeling I felt towards him only grew stronger. We have a lot more in common than I thought at first and those similar interests added to what I felt. Then there's the way he smiles when he's listening to something interesting, the way his eyes sparkle when he's talking about physics, the way he sticks his tongue out a little when he's reading or writing a paper or playing a game and is in his own world. Everything about him sets my heart on fire and makes me long to just touch him so I know he's real." Chat felt his heart flutter at her words, she cared about him so much and so deeply, he felt as if he could drown in the amount of love she showed in her short speech, "but he, he barely noticed me before my parents fell on hard times and now that we are together I want to prove to him and myself that I'm not a gold digging charity case." His heart dropped as she finished and he forced them to come to a stop.

"I can assure you that he doesn't think of you that way." He stated flatly. She gave him a soft, sad smile and pulled his arm.

"That's nice of you to say Chaton, but you can't know what's really in his heart." She let go of his arm and moved to stand as proudly as she could before him, "I will work everyday to make sure I am worthy of him. Just watch me!" He chuckled at her words and cupped her cheek gently in his gloved hand.

"He will have to work twice as hard just to be worthy of you." He stated softly before giving her a quick kiss farewell on top of her head and turning her to face her flat which she hadn't realized they reached, "until we meet again, Princess." He whispered softly before departing faster than she could turn and face him again.

Adrien sighed as he slipped into his bathroom window and dropped his transformation. The text he had sent from Chats baton to his phone caused his ringtone to go off immediately after his transformation was dropped, this time he sighed in relief as he heard the voice of his best friend through the wall.

"Hey man, you almost done?" A light knock on the door followed Ninos worried question, "I really need to go home soon."

"Yeah uh, almost!" He called back as he quickly stripped and hopped under the now cold flow of water. It was hard for him to find time to patrol on days when Nino decided to visit, and with him stopping Marinette from being attacked by that damn red head his timing was only spread thinner. Not that he minded, he would gladly give her all of his time and attention every day for the rest of his life. He just had to fix one tiny problem first, "hey! That mother fucking ginger!" He called out with not entirely fake anger as he stepped out of the bathroom and tossed his phone to Nino.

"Chat-Noir is texting you?" His best friend adjusted his glasses as he read over the message a few times, "wait, did you hire him to follow Mari?"

"Maybe?" He shrugged as he grabbed a bottle of water from his mini fridge, "gotta keep her safe, ya know."

"Only you would think to hire a super hero as yo girls bodyguard." Nino chuckled as he tossed Adriens phone to the opposite end of the couch from where he was sitting.

"Not a bad thing is it?" Adriens question was muffled by the shirt he was shoving over his head.

"Not something just anyone can do either." Nino chuckled as he spoke and crossed his arms over his chest as he watched the blonde stop for a sip of water.

"What can I say, only the best for my Princess." He answered sheepishly.

"Since when do you care so much about her?" Nino asked as he raised an eyebrow at the blonde who was turning quite a few shades of red, "what happened to your Ladybug obsession?"

"That's all that was," Adrien sighed as he sat down on the couch near his phone, "I mean it's not like I would ever have the chance to actually date her so I think I used her as an excuse to ignore what I felt for Marinette. I mean hell, do you know how worried I was about her after the Evillustraitor attack? I barely got any sleep at all that week and had to cancel on three shoots because of it." He sighed once more and shook his head, "it's the same way with every Akuma. I just want to keep her safe and watch her grow into the person that she wants to be."

"And you mentioned the Evillustraitor by name why?" Nino prompted.

"Because that's Nate isn't it! If Nate is hitting on Marinette she won't flat out refuse him because then she could be the cause of him being akumatized! I know she couldn't live with herself if she did that, but if she doesn't he will just keep taking advantage of her. What if he makes her leave me for him out of fear that he will be akumatized if she doesn't?" He groaned as he held his free hand over his eyes.

"Why don't you clear the air, tell him that you guys are dating so he will leave her alone?" Nino asked innocently, not knowing the amount of anger and hatred coursing through his veins.

"Yeah," he laughed menacingly, "you bet your ass I'll fucking talk to him. The second I see him near Marinette he will get a talking to that he won't fucking forget." Nino, who had never witnessed Adrien acting this way before, was flabbergasted and chose to remain silent rather than setting off his best friend once again.

Marinette wondered if Chats black cat bad luck had transferred to her in the night, it was the only thing she could think of to explain the day she was having. First, Adrien had a surprise shoot that took up most of the school day. Nathalie came to their first class personally to warn their teacher about it. Secondly, Alya and Nino teamed up for every project that day causing Marinette to be partnerless during most of the beginning classes. By lunch she figured out that Alya did this so she could work with Adrien on them the rest of the week, it didn't stop her from being alone most of the day though. Finally, math class. Nate must have figured out that she had been alone most of the day and decided to defy Chat and pair up with her. She wasn't sure who the masked feline hero was but she could swear she could feel him watching as the red head slid into the seat that Alya usually occupied.

"Oh! Um, Nate, uh w-what are you doing?" She stammered the question as he pulled out his math text book and school tablet. He shot her a playful smile as his eyes scanned the rest of the room. Apparently she wasn't the only one who felt the cats eyes on them.

"What do you mean Marinette? I'm sitting with my friend who needs a partner for this class since her best friend left her alone all day." Marinette saw Alya visibly tense at his words. She knew the girl was not one to back down from a fight so when her head started to turn towards them the poor designer felt fear creeping up in the back of her mind.

"I asked her to!" She lied quickly, causing herself to feel a bit sick at the thought of it, "I- I'm not doing too well in class so I wanted to team up with Adrien so he could teach me what I'm missing." She could hear her blood pounding in her ears as she spoke, watching her friends shoulders relax rather than looking at him as she did so. Alya did not finish turning to look at them, which caused a bit of weight to lead even her shoulders and a soft sigh to escape her lips.

"Well, you heard her. Seems to me that you need to go back to your own abandoned partner and leave mine alone." Her eyes widened as she slowly looked up to see Adrien, wearing a sleek black turtleneck and deep grey pants, standing before Nino and Alya with his bag slung over one shoulder. He had clearly rushed over after the photo shoot, without even taking the time to change back into his everyday clothes.

"You can't come to school late and decide to split up partners." Nate stated a bit more bravely than she thought possible as he stared down the blonde with his arms crossed over his chest. Adrien moved then, slowly around the front desk and up the sloped walkway until he stood next to Marinette. One hand rested itself on her shoulder as the other slammed down roughly on the desk between Nate and herself. She could feel his body heat as he leaned forward, and smell the mix of shampoo and cologne with only the slightest hints of old cheese underneath it all. The smell was uniquely him and caused her heart to flutter as it registered in her mind.

"I don't think you heard me right." His smile was bright but his voice was full of dark omens sad he spoke to the other boy, "I said move, Marinette is MY partner so you will have to go find another one." Nate, for his part, scoffed at the blondes words as he crossed his arms.

"You can't make me move Agreste." He deadpanned.

"Fine then." Somehow Adrien managed to slide all of her things under one arm as he gently urged her into a standing position with the other. He did this all in one fluid motion which remembered everyone watching him silent with shock and astonishment, "I will just take what belongs to me and be on my way then." He added when the red head said nothing in response to his actions. His hand slipped down her arm then to wrap around her fingers as he pulled her up the isle to where Kim sat alone at his desk.

"Uh, Adrien bro-" the young sports star began.

"Nathaniel needs a partner and we need a desk, do you mind?" Adrien flashed him an award winning smile as he motioned to the sullen artist below them.

"Uh, no problem dude." The much larger boy quickly gathered his things and made his way down to sit beside the dejected young man. Adrien sighed softly as he took Kim's spot and pulled her down to sit closely beside him, the arm that he had used to lead her releasing her only to slide around her lower back as he did so.

"A-Adrien-" she began only to be cut off by his forehead resting lightly on her shoulder.

"I'm so tired," he whispered only loud enough for her to hear, "and you're so warm." He pulled her a bit closer to him, causing his face to rest against her neck as he did so. She was a dark ruby shade of red at this point; her body temperature rising at his touch. Her eyes found the desk to avoid the stares of those around them as she gripped her knees nervously, "so warm." He repeated in a soft murmur against her neck, causing every fiber of her being to tingle.

"Ah- Adrien sit up or we will both be in trouble when the teacher gets here." She urged as her hands gripped her knees even tighter. He nuzzled into her neck in response and gently bit her tender flesh, causing her to squeak in surprise and something more as a warm feeling flooded her lower stomach. She could feel him smile against her before kissing the spot lightly to soothe the pain left behind by his teeth, "A-A-Adrien. P-please stop this for, for now. We, we are at school." She urged with as much control of her voice as she could muster.

"Stupid school ruins everything." He grumbled as he lifted his head, but did not remove his arm from around her and chose to smile smugly down at a very angry looking Nate.

"It will be okay." She soothed as she rubbed his knee gently to calm him down. He let out a small dramatic sigh just for her before pulling his book and tablet out of his bag with one hand.

The teacher arrived seconds before the bell and the class continued as usual, aside from Adriens fingers brushing lightly along the line of skin between her shirt and pants which made it very hard for her to focus on what was being taught as the small contact nearly turned her mind to jelly. She was content however, it just felt right to feel the way she did due to the attention of the handsome blonde beside her. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to pretend that they were all alone, sharing an intimate moment that was just for them; maybe during a small dinner for two, or while they each read their own favorite books, or even while they watched a touching movie together. Alone in the dark and snuggled up on their couch in their own home that was just for them. It would be nice and full of love laden moments like this.

That is when an explosion, a crash, and a chorus of terrified screams ripped her from her daydream and back into reality.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Preview:
> 
> "Adrien," he turned away from her as he bit his bottom lip in worry, why would she be after him? After all he didn't think the he was the one to make a lasting impression on her after all. It was only a crush.
> 
> Crushes can last a long time.
> 
> As he thought this he let his eyes roam back to his partner who was busily typing something into the screen of her ever useful yoyo.


	8. Chapter 8

Alya was the first to react in their small group of friends. She pushed Nino to his feet and pointed him to the group of boys that were gathering by the door to their class room. Everyone knew the drill, after three years of Akuma attacks it had become almost second nature for everyone around Paris to go through the drills that the city council laid in place after the Stoneheart incident that started it all. The boys all worked to secure the doors and windows while the girls gathered first aid supplies and prepared to help anyone who may have been hurt while her favorite superhero took care of the problem. Her favorite superhero who was looking at her with wide eyes as the blonde beside her pulled her closely against him in a protective manner and did not look to be releasing her any time soon. She knew that she had to do something quickly to get her best friend away from everyone so she could go be the kickass bug that Alya had only come to admire more after the big reveal. She rushed up the isle to stand beside the poor girl and placed her hand over her best friends shaking one. With a stern expression painted on her face she looked the boy in his bright green eyes and squeezed the fingers in her grip gently.

"Hey Adrien, you need to go help the boys and she needs to come with me to the nurses office to help gather supplies." The boy pulled Marinette closer to himself as she spoke and she rolled her eyes while letting out a soft motherly groan, "come on loverboy. You know the drill. Let her go and I promise I will give her back to you when this is all over." He grumbled as he loosened his grip on her long enough for Alya to pull her to her feet.

"I'll be back soon." Marinette smiled sweetly at him as Alya pulled her away from the desk where he sat in stunned silence as he watched them walk away. Alya did not release her hand until they were out of the classroom and that was only to turn her towards the stairs so she could push her gently to lead her down them towards the front doors of the school. The blue eye called out in surprise as the taller girl shoved her out of the front doors of the school and onto the small porch formed between the top step and the wide double doors that now stood closed behind them.

"Alya! What are you-" she began.

"Here, for Tikki, go to the alley to change and I'll meet you at the Akuma okay." Alya cut her off quickly as she shoved a bag of cookies in to Marinettes hands. The petite girl looked shocked for a moment before a big grin spread across her features.

"I forgot you knew." She stated in a low soft voice as she slipped the cookies into her purse. Alya chuckled and patted her best friends arm as she pointed to the alley with the thumb of her free hand.

"Go get 'em girl, I'll be right with you if you need me." She stated as she gave her a playful shove.

"See you on the other side!" Marinette called out as she rushed to the indicated spot.

"That's my girl." Alya chuckled as she pulled her phone out and turned to where the sounds of the Akuma attack radiated from. With a gentle smile still firmly on her face she rushed towards her bike, her heart pounding with a mix of fear and excitement that caused her to go down the stairs two at a time.

* * *

Marinette sighed as she leaned against the wall of the school, hidden away from prying eyes with the aid of a large dumpster. Her hands clutched the bag of cookies so tightly to her chest that a few of them became crumbs that filled the bottom of it. Her mind was focused on Adrien, he would be worried if they did not return to the classroom, though she could easily say that she was helping Alya with the blog, but she had to go help out. She couldn't ignore the threat for the sake of her boyfriend(?) and she knew that this was the right thing to do, it had been the right thing to do since she was fourteen and yet now she worried about him more than she worried about the citizens she had been so focused on saving.

"Marinette!" Tikkis small voice cut through her thoughts and brought the reality of the situation crashing around her shoulders, "we have to hurry and save the poor victim from destroying the city!"

"I know. I know." She winced to herself as she said the words and shook her head to clear her thoughts, "we need to figure something out later," she sighed as she tucked the cookies into her purse and eyed the red kwami shyly, she hated that she was becoming like this after only a few days, "Tikki, spots on!" She exclaimed then and was covered in a bright red light that only lasted a moment before dying away.

Ladybug stepped out into the street before pulling her Your from her hip and whipping it up to wrap around a nearby chimney. With a last glance at her school over her shoulder she pulled against the string of her weapon and allowed its recoil to launch her into the air.

* * *

Adrien was both worried and relieved that Marinette was whisked away from him by her best friend who he knew would stow her away somewhere safe and far from the attack before the dark skinned girl ran off to film him, as Chat-Noir, and his partner Ladybug as they did their duty and protected the city of Paris from Hawkmoth. He did not join the other boys as they rushed to secure the windows around the classroom, instead he slipped out of the classroom and took off down the hallway towards the supply closet that had become his place to transform into his superhero persona. Once safely inside he opened the neck of his shirt and allowed the tiny black Kwami to soar out of it and hover before his face.

"I am not riding around in a skin tight sweat sack anymore." Plagg complained loudly as he crossed his arms and glared at the blonde who just seemed extra fidgety right that second.

"We can discuss this later Plagg, claws out!" Was the blondes quick reply. A bright flash of green lit up the small room as his clothes shifted around him to become a skin tight black suit, complete with a black leather belt that hung down behind him in a faux cat tail and a pair of magical black cat ears that twitches towards the sounds coming from the Akumas attack on the town. Chat left the small room quickly and extended his staff to launch himself up and over the open roof of the schools large front room to land easily on the edge of the buildings roof next door.

He scanned over the city as a frown caused his forehead to crease and his eyes to narrow in suspicion. He saw large buildings toppling and explosions all around him yet everything that he saw did not add up to what he felt. No vibrations other than the soft thuds of citizens fleeing the capsizing landmarks reached his body. If what his eyes were telling him was really happening then he would feel something right? He grumbled to himself as a certain orange clad villain sprang to his mind. She had been known to make a large entrance but this was ridiculous, it was ludicrous, it was...

"This has got to be Vulpina again." The soft and slightly angry voice of his partner caused him to whip his head to the right quickly enough that an audible pop was heard by the two of them. Ladybug was crouched beside him with her yoyo in one hand and a matching look of frustration on her face.

"Hello to you as well my lady," he gave her an awkward bow as a goofy smile spread across his face, he cursed himself inwardly for doing this as Marinettes sweet smiling face filled his mind.

"Hello Chat." She returned his smile with a small one of her own before looking back out at the destruction, "she seems to be angry at Adrien Agreste, I can only guess why." She added with what appeared to be a tired sigh.

"Adrien," he turned away from her as he bit his bottom lip in worry, _why would she be after him?_   _After all he didn't think the he was the one to make a lasting impression on her after all. It was only a crush._

_Crushes can last a long time._

As he thought this he let his eyes roam back to his partner who was busily typing something into the screen of her ever useful yoyo.

"I thought so. Every building that's 'going down'" he almost snorted at her air quotations and eye rolling as she spoke the words, "belongs to the Agreste family. I figured as much when I noticed Gabriel Agrestes main store go down." She sighed and scratched her cheek, "really, it's a shame. A great guy like that shouldn't be the victim of one of Hawkmoths Akumas." He did snort then, as the sting of jealousy cut its way through his body. All this time he had been crushing on his masked partner and she was going all dreamy eyed as she talked about his dad.

"Everybody has a bad side, for all we know this could be his doing." He grumbled as he motioned to a billboard with the famous designers name on it in large bold letters.

"I think I would know better than that. He's a good guy." She mumbled under her breath as she studied the screen before her to try to locate the Akumas next hot spot. Chat frowned and grumbled to himself as his magical ears picked up every word.  _Did she seriously like his dad so much? Was he the reason she hadn't given him a second though for all these years?_  A sharp pain stabbed at his temples as Marinette crossed his mind again. His head throbbed as a buzzing sound surrounded him, so loud that he did not hear his partner yelling out his name.

She almost didn't notice the black blur rushing towards Chat, she was so engrossed with mapping out all the locations that the Akuma had already struck that she didn't even think to keep an eye out for anyone approaching them. That was always Chats job anyway, but he seemed so preoccupied that she should have known better, she should have blocked the attack, she should have...

"Chat!" She screamed as her body turned quickly to help, yet not quickly enough as she watched him fall forward while his messy blonde hair slowly began to darken with his blood. She rushed to catch him before he landed hard on his face against the tiled roof and heard a slight groan emit from him as his head instead landed in the crook of her elbow, "Chat, come on, wake up!" She exclaimed as she shook his shoulder gently and looked around for what had hit him. The rooftop was empty of any enemies or weapons, it was almost as if the thing that hit him had simply vanished after the fact.

"Bug!" She looked down to the street quickly to see Alya waving her hands frantically and motioning behind herself. Her deep blue eyes traveled from her friend to the view of the empty street and then up to the tops of the buildings that the brunette was motioning to. There it stood, a boy who seemed about the same age as herself, wearing a loose black shirt and tattered black jeans with long needles running down the sides of them. His skin was a sickly green but his hair, she would recognize the spiked blonde locks anywhere.

"Jacko?" She whispered in awe at the sight of the akumitized boy. He was pulling back what appeared to be a ink stained boomerang and preparing to throw it towards them once again.

"Heads up losers!" He shouted as his eyes glinted Evilly in the light of the sun behind Ladybug. She pulled Chat closer to her as she began to twirl her yoyo at her side, ready for a quick get away if the need arose for it.

"You can't take all the fun." She quickly turned her head towards the voice to find Vinny and Vince, the brothers were a matching shade of blood read and each wore a skin tight suit that appeared to shift from white to black in patters that reminded her of a Rorschach test. She could feel the fear building up inside her as the two pulled out their choice of weapons, large paintbrushes that had metal handles formed into swords. They held them right above the bristles as they sneered at her from their spot on a roof to her left.

"We just have to get their miraculouses, then we can put that stuck up geezer out of work." Her blood ran cold as the low alto voice reached her ears. She turned her head upwards to see the female, clad in bright purple leathers and sporting a neon orange skin tone sneering down at her with her arms crossed. In her hands were two Chinese fans, each with a dragon printed on them in deep green ink. They shifted around the fans in such a way that it hurt her eyes to pay attention to them. Instead she looked into the girls eyes, mostly hidden by a mop of purple hair that she knew all too well was not on her room mate when she woke up that morning.

"Kid?" She asked loud enough for all of them to hear, "how could you of all people fall under Hawkmoths control?"

"I am not Kid! I am Feng Way and soon the city will be under my control! Everything will go just as I decide!" Her akumitized friend shouted back at her. She felt her heartbeat quicken at her words. The young woman just did not seem the type to fall under Hawkmoths control, she was the granddaughter of the master for crying out loud! So then what could have happened to make the girl snap? She had always seemed so happy, inviting her friends over to the flat constantly to hang out in her room and-

_They had been coming over quite a bit the last week, sometimes staying late into the night._

"Whatever is going on you could have told me! I could have helped you out!" She shouted up to the floating girl.

She did not have a chance to hear the girls replay as her friends attacked her simultaneously. She dodged the boomerang flung by Jacko while holding back the blades with her yoyo. Her mind blanked at the thought of fighting back against them, the ones who had been so nice to her and thoughtful as well while she adjusted to being away from her parents. She had to clutch Chat to her chest with one arm and tuck her shoulder under his chin as she backed away from them. This made no sense to her, looking past who they were she still couldn't figure out the very Vulpina way of alerting herself and her partner to their presence. That was until she saw Kid, or Feng Way, raise her fans.

As soon as they were above her head the billboard that Chat had motioned to before started to crumble and tilt forward. She narrowed her eyes at the girl and stood her ground, it was an illusion after all. It could not hurt her. Sidestepping the attacks from the young men was the hard part for her but she was determined not to look away from the other girl.

"It's real." Chats soft voice in her ear caused her to jump and pull away from him slightly. It was enough room for him to menouver his staff and extend it between them. The billboard folded around the top of it twenty meters above their heads and let out a loud grinding groan as it blocked their view of the animas completely. He winced visibly and fell back against her as his arms shook with the strain of holding up his staff and the large sign.

"Chat!" She exclaimed as she pulled back only enough to look at his face, "are you alright."

"It's not like Vulpina. It's real but they're making us think it's not." Chats voice was ragged and worn, telling her that he was under more than just physical strain, "how many, how many are there?"

"Four." She stated quickly.

"N-no." He shook his head causing his blonde locks to brush against her cheeks and nose, "no there were more before."

"No there was just the three guys and Ki- Feng Way." She corrected him. As she moved to hold his shoulders steady.

"Ladybug!" He looked into her eyes then, his own filled with such intensity that she had to fight the urge to shrink back from them, "there's more, Marinette, she's in trouble." As he spoke the ground below them began to move away. Their stomachs seemed to launch towards their throats as their bodies where thrown upwards towards the sign. She looked around quickly for a reason behind this sudden loss of gravity and gasped as her eyes locked onto the crystal blue ones of Kevo. He now bore a light grey skin tone and wore what appeared to be chainmail at first but she soon realized was looped jewelry like he would apply to his clients. He held a large silver needle with a bright green ball at one end in his hand and a menacing glare in his eyes.

"He's correct Ladybug," she winced as he sneered her name, "he just doesn't know how right he is."that was all she needed to hear to know that not only Kid, but her friends as well knew who she was in and out of the mask. She couldn't stop her hands from shaking against Chats shoulders as her wide stare became locked with the akumitized piercing artist. He knew, as well as the others, they could easily take her earrings from her at any time and give them to Hawkmoth. She could feel her confidence draining from her body as the thought that she wasn't even safe as a civilian ran through her mind on loop.

"Where's Chrissy Chris?" She asked as sternly as she could.

"You will see." Was the mans response as he chuckled evilly and released them from whatever hold his needle allowed him to have. They fell roughly onto the roof and each winced as pain ran up their bodies, they had hit much too hard for the short amount that they had fallen. She scrambled to her feet as quickly as she could and turned to face where Kevo was standing.

An unobstructed view of the city from the triangular hole that was formed by the makeshift billboard tent greeted her instead.

"How did you know his name?" Chat asked as he made his way to her side. She inwardly kicked herself for the slipup and turned to face him.

"I am, friends with Marinette. I know all of them actually and I do believe him when he says that they will go after her. You need to head inside the school and try to find her." She pulled out her yoyo and quickly searched anything related to Kid as she spoke, "while you do that I will go by her house and see if she's there. "

"No."

"No?" She looked up at him in shock to see him staring hard at the roof tiles below her feet.

"We need to find the last person Marinette was with. We can find her faster that way." Chat stated with an oddly calm voice as he leaned out of the space they found themselves in to scan the streets below them.

"Ladybug? Are you alright?" Her eyes widened slightly as the voice of the very person he was talking about drifted up to her from below. She bit down hard on her bottom lip as thoughts of Chat interrogating Alya popped into her mind, finally she settled on a solution.

"I think she found us." She stated quickly to the black clad hero at her side, "I'll talk to her while you scout out any other akuma victims nearby. Meet up at the Louvre in ten alright."

"It's a date my lady." He stated as she moved to exit the shelter they had been standing under. She turned to give him a sad smile before rushing out of his line of sight and down to her waiting friend.

* * *

"So this is Kids grandfather and the miraculous keeper?" Alya asked as she stumbled off of Ladybugs back before the old mans shop. It had not been easy to piggyback her friend across Paris while using her yoyo to swing between buildings, the strain was visible to the brunette as the red and black clad girl huffed and nodded in reply to her questioning.

"W-we have about eight minutes. I wanted to see if he knew what caused them to change and- and possible akuma locations." Marinette manages to say after a moment she took to catch her breath.

"And then what?" Alya, ever helpful, held the door open for her friend to enter first.

"Then you and Marinette show up at the Louvre to ease Chats mind and she leaves shortly after so Ladybug can get her friends de-evilized and back to their old selves." The girls were standing in the foyer of his shop now, waiting for the soft chanting that echoed through it to cease so they could enter without disturbing his work.

"How often do you do stuff like this?" Alya questioned.

"Not very often, I only had to start doing this after the evillustraitor." Ladybug shrugged as she peeked around the edge of the curtain that separated the foyer from the shops main room.

"You mean Nathaniel?"

"Yeah."

"What's up with him anyway?" She winced at Alyas question, of course the budding reporter would bring it up now.

"He uh, tried to kiss me the other night."

"WHAT! When?" She winced as the brunette shouted.

"When I was at the café with him trying to get some inspiration from his art. Chat-Noir showed up and 'saved' me before anything happened." Alya laughed softly as Ladybug emphasized the word 'saved' with air quotations.

"Do you think he told Adrien about it? You did say that he sent Chat after you the night after you moved in with him." The question caused Ladybug to groan softly and cover her eyes with her gloved hands.

"I don't know, maybe? Did you see how he acted today? Thank God Chloe wasn't in class." She shook her head as she groaned once again. Alya didn't have a chance to ask another question as the two girls were interrupted by a short man in a red and white Hawaiian shirt opening the curtain and giving them a broad yet tired smile.

"Ladybug," he stated in a calm voice that was betrayed by the bags under his eyes, "I have been expecting you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Preview:
> 
> "Me?" It was the first time Marinette ever heard her best friend sound so shy. She glanced to the side and eyed the brunette as she pointed up to herself and looked anywhere but at the old man.
> 
> "Of course, who else shows the faith and determination in the face of uncertainty and fear. You are bright and kind and have shown to be of even mind under stress. You are a perfect chosen." Alya eyed Marinette who was having a staring contest with her own Kwami as the man spoke. She remembered the girl telling her she had almost passed her own jewels over to Alya back when the first akuma attack was at its peak. She wondered briefly if that helped the old man come to his decision before looking back into his age squinted eyes.


	9. Chapter 9

Chat could feel the stinging pain on the back of his head as he chased down the group of akumas that seemed to be multiplying as his vision blurred and shifted. He could feel his body fighting against his mind as it attempted to stop, to rest. He needed rest his body told him while his groggy mind urged him to continue. It was a concussion, he decided as he slid to an awkward stop on the next rooftop. It had to be a concussion from that stupid blondes dumb boomerang. His knees shook then gave out all together causing him to fall back with a thump into a sitting position that caused him to support himself by pressing his hands against the burning tiles of the roof below him. His head swam as the world whirled in a lazy circle around him.

"Fuck." He groaned as he closed his eyes tightly against the sight. Immediately his head felt heavy and rolled to rest on his right shoulder, "can't, sleep." He stated through gritted teeth as he forced his eyes open once again.

"Getting sleepy?" His bright green eyes quickly located the grinning face of Kevo who was lounging in the air a few feet above him.

"Wouldn't you like that!" He snapped before grabbing his throbbing head. Kevo chuckled in his akumatized state which caused it to come out deep and raspy, almost as if he was sick.

"If I wanted you asleep, you would be asleep." The answer sent a shiver down the black clad heros spine.

"Why are you here just talking to me? Why not try to take me out or take my ring or both?" Chat asked as the pain in his head intensified.

"I am not the physical type." The akumatized Kevo shrugged as he spoke.

"Not the-" Chat did not have time to finish his thought as his body suddenly felt as if it had gained several tons of weight, especially against his arms, "you- your controlling my perception of reality aren't you!" He accused as he fell back onto his back harshly. The response he received was yet another out of harsh laughter.

"Even if you figured it out, it's not like you can stop it. Clearly you're too weak to even fight back against me. What will you do when the others show up I wonder." Chats eyes narrowed as Kevo lazily drifted around him.

"Where are the others?" He growled.

"Oh, just chasing down your little  _love bug_." The sound of the akumas victims voice echoed around Chat as he shit his eyes tightly against yet another wave of excruciating pain in the back of his head.

"Ladybug will defeat them easily." He stated through clenched teeth as he gripped his head in pain.

"Who said they were chasing down Ladybug?" The smirk that he received made his blood run cold.  _If they weren't going after Ladybug as Ladybug that meant they knew who she was outside of her mask, that was something that not even he knew._  His worry and fear swirled around in the pit of his stomach turning into a sickly feeling that caused him to have the urge to vomit.

"What, why?" Was all he could manage to get out.

"Because we know it will hurt the Agrestes, at least the boy." Another round of laughter caused Chats head to swim, _they were going to hurt Ladybug to get back at him, but why?_

* * *

"You mean they lost the shop because Mr. Agreste is buying out that part of town to build a bigger store?" Marinette was once again out of her mask and feeding Tikki from the stash of cookie that Alya had given her before. The two teens sat cross legged on the floor with a low table separating them from the short old man that Tikki called Master Fu. He looked tired and almost sickly as he laid out the foreclosure papers before the two girls.

"It happened about a week ago, they were fighting against him the entire time but they simply could not acquire the money to keep OC open. Chi was heartbroken the last time I saw her, and angry. When I warned her against such emotions she simply stated ' _being one of the akuma, I could use the power about now_.' And then she was gone." His explanation caused both girls to gasp in shock.

"She was okay with being Akumatized even before hand, that just doesn't seem like Kid." Marinette stated with a deep frown.

"Chi had a rough childhood, her parents were divorced and she was forced to move in with me at a young age. She was a very angry child and only her friends that she made in school when she was a teen seemed to help her calm down. I am afraid that those same friends backed her up on her anger this time and thus her true pain shone through and she fell victim to Hawkmoth."

"Not only her. Jacko and the others were akumatized as well." Marinette stated, cutting off Master Fus explanation.

"No, they are simply under her control. As- what did you say she called herself?" He rubbed his goatee as he eyed the two girls.

"Fangs Way." Alya answered as she held her phone up, showing the akumitized Chi to her grandfather who sighed in sorrow.

"As Fangs way, she has the ability to transform others into her followers and grant them their own powers." He stated as he looked down into his cup of green tea.

"Which is why I chose to hide out here with grandpa Fu." The girls looked up quickly to see Chris stepping into the room through the curtain, "Wayzz can hide us with his protective charms without grandpa even transforming."

"You, you, you.." Marinette stuttered out as she pointed to the clearly normal male.

"Yeah yeah, we all knew who you were. It's not like Kid hasn't shown us those earrings a million times." He rolled his eyes and chuckled as he crossed his arms before his chest. Marinette touched the now blank stud in her right ear and shot the master a questioning look.

"It is okay Ladybug, by coming to me he has proved himself trustworthy." The old man stated as he dismissively waved his hand before himself.

"Besides it's not like grandpa Fu didn't plan on expanding the team anyway." Chris took his place beside the old man as he spoke.

"Expanding the team?" The girls asked in unison. To this the old man smiled and nodded slowly.

"Ladybug and Chat-Noir will need help in order to bring down my granddaughter who is well versed in miraculous and Kwami lore. Thankfully you have brought with you someone who I have had my eye on for a long while, someone who is clearly worthy of a miraculous." He simply nodded as he spoke, keeping eye contact with Marinette all the while.

" **Me?** " It was the first time Marinette ever heard her best friend sound so shy. She glanced to the side and eyed the brunette as she pointed up to herself and looked anywhere but at the old man.

"Of course, who else shows the faith and determination in the face of uncertainty and fear. You are bright and kind and have shown to be of even mind under stress. You are a perfect chosen." Alya eyed Marinette who was having a staring contest with her own Kwami as the man spoke. She remembered the girl telling her she had almost passed her own jewels over to Alya back when the first akuma attack was at its peak. She wondered briefly if that helped the old man come to his decision before looking back into his age squinted eyes.

"What do I have to do?" She asked as a wave of determination filled her.

"Wha- Alya you-" Marinette stumbled around her words as she stared at her friend flabbergasted.

"I am ready to help out my best friend and my city!" Alya exclaimed as she raised her arms in a flexing manner. This caused Marinette to giggle but her eyes still held traces of deep fear for her dear friends safety.

"Are you sure?" Both she and Master Fu asked in unison.

"Absolutely." Alya gave her best friend one of her classic smirks as she answered the question.

* * *

Chat did not understand how or why he escaped Kevo and his mind altering abilities. He had just suddenly felt free and as fine as he could with a splitting headache and an odd sense that the roofs he was landing on were slowly rotating on their own. He had to have a concussion, at least a little one. Deciding to himself that he shouldn't overthink his problems at the moment, he pushed on forward towards the Louver. The akumatized Kevo had been nowhere in sight when he could finally stand and he was sure that meant he had joined in on the search for Ladybug or even Marinette. There were far too many Akumas this time, at most he and Ladybug had handled two or maybe three together but now there were double that. To top it all off if they were going after Marinette, people she trusted would be looking to do her harm or even kill her just to get to his day to day self.

"Fuck!" He punched a nearby chimney as he slipped on yet another roof. The Louver was in sight now and he could see her standing outside of it clueless to what was going on. She was on her phone and looking around her surroundings as if she was waiting for someone yet those bright blue eyes of hers held no fear in them, Ladybug had not told her of an Akumas attack that was the only explanation. He was close now, close enough to see and hear what was going on around her but not so close that she could see him; which was good considering the state that he was in. He would need at least a few minutes to get himself together before he made himself known to her and took her someplace safe.

"So how does this work?" His ears perked up and his eyes honed in on the orange and white figure making her way over to Marinette, Volpina. His fists clenched as his teeth were ground together in anger,  _so she was akumatized as well after all_.

"We meet with Chat then you guys chase down the Akumas while I uh, oh hello officer how is your day?" Marinette waved at Sabrina's dad with a large smile plastered on her face. Volpina sighed and shook her head as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I dunno bug, I don't think he will just trust me willingly." Volpina stated as she took a step closer to Marinette. In that moment he moved swiftly, jumping off of the building he had been perched on to land in between the two gifs with his staff extended enough to block the fox from taking another step closer to his princess.

"Chat no!"

" _What the hell_?" The two girls voices rang out as he practically growled at the taller girl.

"What the hell do you think you're doing  _akauma_?" He was ready to attack that stupid necklace and show everyone around them who the wannabe superhero really was. His hands practically shook with the need to protect Marinette.

"Chat, she isn't an Akuma. Ladybug sent her to guard me." He turned his head to look into Marinettes eyes as her honey sweet voice penetrated through his aching head. Her hand rested on his leather clad shoulder gently as if she was trying to urge a wild animal to calm down.

"She's a liar Princess, she was akumatized once before and tricked me into believing her. Trust me Ladybug didn't send her." He stated in a flat voice as he lowered his ears against the pain in his head.

"Ladybug said you would say that." Volpina scoffed as she shook her head, "why don't you show him the video?"

"What video?" Chat was clearly confused about how friendly the two girls seemed to be, suddenly he felt a strange sense of wryness like he would get when he was around Marinette and her best friend.

"L-Ladybug took a video for me to show you since she had to go track the akumas." Marinette fumbled with the phone in her hand for a second before turning the screen to face him. There was Ladybug in costume and standing beside Volpina who was looking pretty in awe at the time the video was recorded.

"Okay kitty cat." His lady's confident voice echoed from the phone, "I know this will seem odd to you so I am just going to go ahead and send this to you through a friend of ours. Meet Volpina, the real Volpina."

"Hello." The Volpina on the phone gave him a small wave as she grinned from ear to ear.

"Now I know you are really worried about our mutual friends safety since it is her roommates who are hawkmoths latests victims so I am sending her to you with Paris' newest hero and my personal best friend."

"Awe girl you're gonna make me blush." The Volpina in the video gave Ladybug a quick but loving hug.

"Okay okay, you don't have to show off Aly-  _Volpina_." The two in the video snickered a bit and turned back to face the camera, "anyway Chat, you can trust her. She is not akumatized. She has a Kwami just like us and she will protect Marinette better than even I could."

"Oh if only he knew."

"Hush." Ladybug was smiling as she ordered the Volpina in the video to be quiet.

"What girl, we both know I kick butt."

" _Anyway_ ," Ladybug turned back to face the camera and her face grew closer," she is a friend Chat. I know what happened back then and what is happening now but trust me ok. Marinette and I both saw her transform with our own eyes. We both know each other's secret identities and will take them to the grave. If you need to test her just ask her what I did to break the spell dark Cupid put you under." He looked up from the phone to see Volpina making kissy faces at Marinette and his princess blushing and giggling at her.

"How do I know that this isn't just one of her illusions?" He asked Marinette directly, making sure that he didn't even glance at Volpina while he did so. The dark haired princess before him simply smiled and reached out slowly to rest her hand against his cheek. Her hand was so warm and solid and reassuring that he found himself leaning into it as his eyes slowly closed and a soft purr escaped his throat.

"Do you remember the first night we actually spoke? You rescued me from Evillustraitor and I didn't even thank you for it. I just watched you run away into the night to rescue the next damsel." Marinette felt an odd twang in her heart as she said the soft words to him, a sense of guilt that settled in the pit of her stomach and made it hard to hold the gentle smile on her face.

"Okay then. If that's all cleared up we do have a job to do still." Volpina came to her rescue just as she did outside of her mask as well. Marinette could have hugged her in that moment but held back from her initial thoughts and simply stepped back from Chat.

"Right, you two are real life superheroes. I can't keep you from doing you job." She stated, sounding as awestruck by the two as she possibly could while doing so.

"Y-yeah." Chat was still visibly thrown by her touching his cheek and reached up slowly to brush the spot with his fingers as he spoke, "yeah, right, uh you um, new girl. Go ahead and look around for Ladybug and I'll take Pr- Marinette here somewhere safe."

"Why don't I take Marinette here somewhere safe and you go after Ladybug?" Volpina countered curtly. The short Blackette looked between the two wryly as they made this short exchange.

"Because I don't really trust you yet, not with Marinette." Chat answered as he rested his hand on her shoulder.

"But you trust me with Ladybug?" Volpina crossed her arms and cocked out her hip as she asked the question. One eyebrow raised causing her mask to raise slightly as well.

"Ladybug can defend herself if she needs to."

"I can defend myself."

"Marinette can handle herself." The two girls spoke in unison almost as if they planned it all along. He found himself frowning at both of them as his ears lowered like they did when he was in trouble with his lady.

"Okay, I have no time for this." He grumbled under his breath. Neither girl had time to react before he had the petite Marinette scooped up into one arm and his staff extended with the other. Volpina was calling out to them but he instead focused on the shocked gasp escaping his princesses lips no the whistle of the wind in his ears.

"Oh that girl is going to be the death of me." Volpina sighed and shook her head as she turned her attention on the very long flute that her new superpowers came with, "just flick it down and.." she followed her Kwami she instructions and was suddenly flying upwards with a light beam propelling her from the end of the flute.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Preview:
> 
> "As for you Chat," she stated as she flicked his bell, "I've known Al- Volpina longer and I do trust her completely. After all she discovered who I am by accident and she hasn't told a soul." She moved to rest her arm across Volpinas shoulders as she spoke and the fox themed heroine smirked at him cockily as he stared at them in shock.
> 
> "Are we interrupting anything?" the three teens looked up with deep frowns on their faces at the five that either hovered above them or stood proudly on the railings nearby


	10. Chapter 10

Fangs Way sighed as she hovered above the Agreste mansion. Her cold red eyes scanned the windows of the large house and narrowed when they landed on a pigtailed bluish black haired head. A large smile toyed with the edges of her lips as she lifted her right fan high into the air before lowering it slowly to point the open fan at the largest of the windows. The glass formed a spiderweb pattern before the window began to vibrate and the glass shards flew outwards. A half dome was formed in the air before her as the glass hit the barrier she had placed around herself. Her eyes shone like two miniature suns as she made her way into the darkened boys bedroom where the young girl lay across the couch. A bit of sunlight from outside glistened off a red and black orb in the girls ear and Fangs Ways wmirk turned into a sinister smile.

"Wakey wakey Roomie." She cackled as she snatched the girl up by the hair.

Or, at least she thought she had.

The hair slid cleanly off of the mannequins head, a Ladybug Collectors Edition wig tag hung down from the back of it tauntingly. She growled and kicked the couch, sending it flying across the room to collide with the skateboard ramp along the opposite wall. Anger coursed through her veins as she threw the wig down and ground it beneath her foot. It was all a trick! Which meant that her young roomie was already two steps ahead of her. Her smile then was something to be truly feared as she opened her left fan and flipped it over three times in the air. Once that action was done she could see tiny figures of her friends side by side, yet they all had different background scenery letting her know they were split up in their search. Well, all but one of her friends; Chris's icon was still and sported a plain white square that pissed her off to no end.

"Listen up fellows, we are going to play a little game I like to call flytrap." She stated then, causing the others to stop in their tracks as her voice echoed in their ears.

_-One Hour Earlier—_

Chat stood in his room with Marinette still clutched tightly to him. Her heart was pounding rapidly in her chest as he leaned down to nuzzle her cheek fondly, as their skin brushed together a soft purring left his throat. The guilt was building in her chest as he continued the very loving embrace for far too long, what if Adrien walked in on them like this? She couldn't let that happen; she also couldn't let her parents walk in and find her there in Adriens room in the arms of one of Paris' superheroes. She had to get out of this situation before something happened that one or both of them would regret later. So with a grunt she shifted her body enough to leverage herself against his chest and pushed as heard as she could. His arms tightened around her waist as she did so and this caused her body to slide upwards until her chest was level with his face. Her own face turned beet red as his eyes stared straight ahead at her breasts. She attempted to wiggle out of his grasp then to no avail, growing more and more flustered with each passing second.

"Dammit Chat let me go before someone sees us!" she exclaimed as she reached her breaking point. His eyes widened as they gazed up at her, she watched the realization flash across them before his tight grip finally loosened enough for her to escape.

"I'm, I'm sorry Princess." He stated as he stared hard at the floor between their feet, "I just, sorry." She frowned for a moment before looking around and letting out a soft sigh. She watched him scratch his neck absently as the silence stretched between them and felt her heart sink; she wasn't treating him fairly when in his eyes he just saved her from possibly going off with someone he wouldn't trust just yet.

"It's okay Chat," she murmured as she gave the black clad male a chaste hug before looking around the room again with her eyebrows furrowed slightly in worry, "but isn't this one of the places they would attack?" she asked as her eyes met his once again, "they are after Mr. Agreste aren't they?"

"Shit," Chat scratched his head angrily, "I wasn't even thinking about, wait, how did you know they were going after Fa- Gabriel?" he winced at his slip up but the young girl didn't seem to notice as she paced back and forth before his bed.

"Volpina told me." She answered after a moment without ceasing in her pacing.

"Right," he sighed and shook his head as he watched her, "I forgot about Volpina." She stopped moving as he spoke and bit her thumbnail as she looked around his room once again. Her eyes landed on a mannequin you would see in a store, a full body one from head to feet. It was decked out to look just like Ladybug; complete with a mask, earrings, and a wig that was spot on as far as her alter ego went. An idea sprung into her mind as her eyes darted back and forth between it and the couch.

"I have an idea, can you help me?" she asked as she glance at him once again. His eyes lit up and she could swear she saw his tail twitch in excitement at her words.

_-Presently-_

Chat was uncomfortably close to her as they both leaned their ears against the door to listen to her akumatized roommates words. His warm breath brushed against the back of her neck as his gloved hand snaked across her wrist to pull her back from the door.

"Why would she be calling Ladybug her roomie?" he asked in a hushed whisper as they neared the back of the closet.

"Is that what you heard?" she asked quickly and refused to look at him as she did so, "I-I heard her say Buggie, I figured it was because she's Ladybug." She chuckled nervously only to have Chats hand clamp over her mouth quickly. Her cheeks flushed but he seemed to believe her words because he didn't push his questions any further.

"So, your plan was to trick her with a fake Ladybug because..?" he urged as the other girls muffled words.

"I was hoping she would think it was a trap and leave." Marinette hissed quietly as the sounds of the other woman walking through the room reached their ears. They heard an angry snarl and footsteps growing fainter before silence fell over the room like a blanket.

"You stay here, stay hidden, and I will go check it out. If she's gone I'll knock twice and go meet up with Ladybug and her friend. I would rather you stay here even if its safe but if you need to get away be sure to call my baton so I'll know okay?" he stated as he held his hand out for her phone. She looked at him for a long moment before handing over her cellphone. He smiled at the picture of her and Alya on her screensaver for a second before imputing the number to his batons phone and handing the device back to her, "that's only for emergencies now," he stated with a light chuckle, "like now, or if there is a red head bugging you, or if you're feeling a bit lonely." He winked after this and she rolled her eyes.

"Chat, I'm with Adrien, you can't flirt with every girl you know." She chided him through a sigh. His face fell, but only for a moment before he smirked and gave her a quick nod.

"Friends can be there when you're lonely too Princess." He stated softly; then he was gone, leaving her in the dark closet to wait for the two knocks that came shortly after he left. She slid down the far wall as she listened to his muffled footsteps that made their way to the windows. Just like with Fangs Way, silence fell over her telling her he more than likely had left the oom.

"Are you okay Marinette?" Tikki asked as she flew out of the girls small pink purse.

"I don't know Tikki." She admitted with a soft sigh, "I'm scared, Kid knows who I am and she could have told Hawkmoth everything," the small kwami shook her head at the young girls words.

"I doubt it, it just doesn't seem like something that Chi would do, akuma or no akuma." Tikki assured her in a small quiet voice.

"I hope you're right," Marinette stated with a small smile, "Tikki could you do me a favor?"

"of course Marinette!" the ladybug kwami casted a red light against her cheek as she hugged it reassuringly.

"Can you take a peek outside and make sure it's safe for Ladybug to leave?" Marinette asked with a gentle smile to the small being that she considered one of her best friends.

"Absolutely!" Tikki exclaimed before phasing through the wall.

* * *

"So, how long have you and My Lady been friends?" Chat called out over the wind that was howling in his ears as his eyes locked onto the orange clad 'superhero'.

"Me and that girl have been friends for years." Volpina scoffed as she glanced down at the black clad blonde below her that was running across the rooftops and surprisingly keeping up with her midflight speeds.

"She's never mentioned you before." He yelled as he pole vaulted to a taller building before he continued to run.

"That's because until today I was a civilian." Volpina shook her head at the moody boy, jealous Chat, she thought as a small smile crossed her lips, well you should be, "I've known her longer than you have, and I am willing to bet on that."

"I highly doubt it, My Lady and I have been partners since day one." He proudly stated as he placed one hand on his chest after landing beside the fox themed woman on the roof of the Eiffel Tower. She crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her left hip out as she stared him down.

"Boy I knew her  _BEFORE_  she was Ladybug." She stated just as proudly.

"Seriously you two? We are suppose to be fighting Fangs Way, not each other." They both turned to see Ladybug behind them with her arms crossed and her eyes narrowed in anger.

"Sorry," the two before her said in unison as their heads lowered.

"As for you Chat," she stated as she flicked his bell, "I've known Al- Volpina longer and I do trust her completely. After all she discovered who I am by accident and she hasn't told a soul." She moved to rest her arm across Volpinas shoulders as she spoke and the fox themed heroine smirked at him cockily as he stared at them in shock.

"Are we interrupting anything?" the three teens looked up with deep frowns on their faces at the five that either hovered above them or stood proudly on the railings nearby.

"Kid this isn't you! You know better than to give in to the dark powers hat Hawkmoths akumas give you!" Ladybug called up to the other woman almost desperately.

"What if I'm not giving in, what if I'm taking over?" Fangs Way asked in a mocking manner, "Hawkmoth made a big mistake choosing one of us." The neon orange skin of Fangs Ways face pulled upward in a sinister smile as she motioned between herself and Ladybug.

"What do you mean?" Volpina demanded as she stepped in front of Ladybug protectively.

"She's not under his control," Ladybug breathed as she placed her hand on her chin in thought, "She wanted it in the first place so he isn't in control!" all five in front of them laughed as one, creating an eerie possessed sound that caused Ladybug to visibly shudder.

"Someone give buggette a prize, I know, Jacko how 'bout we give her some quick ink?" Jacko was flying at her like a bullet before she could even register the woman's words. She jumped backwards and spun her yoyo before herself to block the torrent of tattoo guns that were flying out of his quickly moving hands.

"Ladybug!" Chat cried out as he took a step towards her, only to stop short when Kevos face filled his line of sight. He cringed and took a few steps back as the other male snickered and looked him up and down.

"How's the headache pussycat?" Kevo asked, suddenly Chats head was put under so much pain that all he could do was grab it as he fell to his knees screaming. Ladybug saw this happening and instantly attempted to lead her own battle his way in order to help out her partner.

"Volpina! Try to get the akuma!" she shouted over Chats seemingly never ending screams. Her best friend jumped to follow her command and shot upwards quickly to get to Fangs Way who was floating above it all, and watching the scene with a smile that appeared almost sad to the fox miraculous holder. The orange skinned akuma victim(?) looked at her with a drawn out sigh when she got close enough to reach her with her long flute.

"I thought this would be better," the older girls words had her stopping in her tracks and staring at he in shock, "I thought I could take control and then I could protect her from it. I wanted to get her as Marinette and get her to safety," Volpina didn't speak as she continued, "Honestly, I never wanted to hurt her but as long as she's Ladybug I don't have much of a choice."

"You wanted to protect her yet you just gave away her identity to Hawkmoth!" Volpina shouted then as anger coursed through her veins.

"No." Fangs Way stated calmly.

"No?" Voplinas voice lost its edge to confusion as she spoke.

" _No_." Fangs Way looked her over as she spoke, "All he can hear is Jagged Stone on a loop. It's the way I wanted things." The smile faded from her face as she shrugged at Volpina.

"so, you are in complete control?" Volpina asked in shock.

"Somewhat." The fox themed hero did not hesitate then, she closed the distance between them and swung straight down with her long flute aimed straight at the older females head. Fangs Way blocked it with one of her fans and did a backflip to gain some distance between her and her opponent. The two locked eyes and Volpina could feel a surge of adrenaline rushing through her veins as the other female raised her fans in what reminded her of a stance in karate.

They flew at each other once again, trading blows as the battle below them devolved into two one on two matches against Volpinas best friend and their shared partner. She knew she had to focus on the task at hand, but her eyes were pulled to the fights below them as Chat and Ladybug called out in shock or pain. She felt a sharp pain in her side as one of Fangs Ways fans slashed across it, bringing her back into the fight once again. She flew at the other female, swinging her flute down quickly at the woman once again and crying out in anger when it barely missed its mark. She growled at the now laughing alums victim as her eyes narrowed in pure hatred. She couldn't believe that this was Kid, no, she adored the girl who took in her best friend when she truly needed it. The woman who was now laughing at her was not Kid, no, she would not believe that Kid and Fangs Way were one in the same.

"You aren't her!" Volpina found herself screaming, "bring Kid back you bitch!" She pressed the flute to her lips and closed her eyes as the words, "illusion melody," slipped from her lips. Orange light flew from the tip of her flute and wrapped around the woman in front of her. The woman screamed, but only for a moment before they were cut short as the spell of the music Volpina was playing captured her in its web.

Below them, the four that were fighting her partners suddenly stopped and looked up at Volpina as she continued to play. Her orange eyes locked onto Ladybugs blue hues as the other girl helped Chat up from the feats position. She gave her best friend a quick nod without ceasing in her playing. Ladybug nodded back to her before grasping her yoyo in her right hand and flinging it into the air above her head.

"Lucky charm!" Her voice was loud enough for Volpina to hear it over her own music but she was far to focused on keeping her illusion up to pay attention to what had been bestowed on her friend. She had to keep the other girl in the world her music created for her. In that world Fangs Way had won, hence why the other four were just staring at them blankly.

"Do you know where the akuma is?" Chat had appeared beside her, using his extended baton to lift himself into the air. She shrugged at him and motioned to the frozen woman with her eyes as she continued to play. If she stopped then her ability would end, she only had a few more minutes that she could help them out anyway. The beeping of her necklace told her that much.

"Shouldn't trust you anyway." He growled as his eyes flashed down to Ladybug who was holding a jar of ink and looking around herself quickly. He was gone soon after, sliding down the pole to rush to her side. She watched on as he attempted to help Ladybug only to be pushed away from her as her eyes locked onto Volpina.

"We don't have much time, Chat is going to destroy this over your heads and then you're going to release her. The akuma is in her pocket, her lighter, try to get it after she's blinded!" She nodded at her friends shouted words, "you need to close your eyes before impact." Another nod to confirm that she was in on the plan and suddenly Ladybug was swinging above her and throwing the ink jar as Chat called out his ability. She closed her eyes as the sound of glass shattering emanated from above her and pulled the flute away from her lips. Fangs Way screamed as the ink seeped into her eyes and her four followers flew up towards them quickly.

Volpina was a hair quicker, plunging her hand deep into the other girls pocket and yanking out the lighter, she tossed it to Ladybugs waiting hand a split second before the four males slammed into her. She was flung onto a nearby rooftop as Ladybug crushed the lighter in her hands and allowed the pieces to fall to the ground as her focused shifted to catching the purple and black butterfly in her yoyo.

* * *

"What the hell?" Alya was angry as she sat on Adruens bed beside Marinette, "why would Chat bring you here of all places?" Marinette simply shrugged and sighed. The two of them had de transformed outside and were let in by her mother soon after. She wanted to wait and see if Chat would check on her before heading home. She was more worried about what would happen to Kid than sitting in the room of the boy who had been stealing her heart more and more lately, or even the reason behind Chats strange actions.

"I guess he figured I would be safe with Adrien." She mumbled softly as she looked out of the large bar like windows along his bedroom wall, the shattered glass he'd been fixed but she still felt a foreboding sensation in her gut as she traced the outline of each pane of glass with her eyes.

"That dumb cat won't trust me at all." Alyas complaints pulled her from her thoughts and she turned her head slightly to look at her best friend. The dark skinned girl had leaned back to rest the weight of her upper body on her arms while her hands rested against the bed.

"Give him time, he will come around. He just doesn't know you like I do." Marinette offered her friend a gentle smile as she spoke, but her smile faltered as she noticed the door to the bedroom they were currently sitting in beginning to open. Alya heard the slow creak of the hinges turning on their axis and froze as well, both girls stared at one another with worried expressions on their face as the sound filled the room around them; it wasn't Chat, the blasted cat would have hopped through the windows. It could be her parents, or Adriens father, or-

" _Marinette_!" Adrien exclaimed as their eyes locked over Alta's shoulder, "Alya, what are you two doing here?" He asked, motioning to his room as he spoke.

"Chat Noir brought Mari here and she texted me so I came to check on her." Alya stated far to quickly for Marinette to even open her mouth to speak. She gave the dark skinned girl a shocked look as she held her mouth tightly shut. That was actually a very good explanation after all.

"Thank goodness you both are okay, but did you hear?" He asked as he moved to sit in his computer chair across from them, "the akuma, it was-"

"Kid." Marinette finished for him as she looked pointedly at the floor.

"We just read a news article on the attack." Alya added quickly as she waved her phone absently before herself.

"O-oh." Adrien mimicked Marinettes stance as he let out a soft sigh, "well uh, what are you going to do?" He asked as his brows furrowed and he looked up to Marinette once again. Silence fell around the three of them as his question danced around her mind; she had to go home, talk to Kid and the others and make sure they were all okay. She couldn't just leave them to their own pained thoughts after what they went through.

"Go home." She stated finally through a soft sight, "talk to Kid, make sure she's okay and then get some rest." She shrugged and looked towards his windows with a sad look in her eye.

"Well, we can't wait for Chat forever," Alya sighed and leaned forward slightly, "come on Mari, I'll walk you home and help you talk to Kid." Marinette nodded and Alya stood from the bed before looking over at Adrien and letting out a soft sigh when she saw him gazing longingly at her best friend, "I'll see you at school tomorrow Agreste." She stated as she gave him a bright smile.

"I'll see you two out." Adrien stood as well as he spoke.

"No!" Both girls exclaimed as one, causing him to take a step back in shock.

"You need to get some rest." Marinette stood then and took a step towards him as she spoke, "don't worry okay, I'll be fine and I'll see you tomorrow at school." She was close enough for him to reach so he pulled her into a tight hug, not caring that her best friend was there ready to snap a photo of them at any moment.

"Of course ill worry about you." He breathed into her ear, "I care about you and I want you to be safe." He added softly as his hands pressed into her back to hold her closer to himself.

"I'll be fine." She whispered as she turned to press her lips gently against his cheek.

* * *

Plagg flew out of his pocket shortly after the girls left his room and the door closed with a definitive click. The small black cat kwami sat on his desk as he watched the blonde who was staring at the door as if it had personally offended him. Adrien sighed and looked down at the ground after what felt like forever for the tiny cat like being and moved slowly to his cheese fridge to retrieve what he knew his companion wanted. The kwami jumped happily on the food offered to him but kept a wary eye on how miraculous holder. The poor boy was, troubled, and he had seen that sort of troubled look in the eyes of many of his kittens before the blonde model.

"Something on your mind kid?" He asked as he swallowed his cheese.

"Yes, Kid." Adrien sighed as he crossed the room to open his closet and stare blankly into it, "Kid, Marinettes roommate. She called Ladybug her 'roomie.'" He turned to look at plagg shortly after he spoke.

"Interesting." Plagg offered with a shrug.

"Plagg, how long have you known?" Adrien asked slowly.

"How long have I known what?"

"That Marinette is Ladybug." The blonde turned to lock his eyes with the matching green orbs of his kwami as he spoke. The black cat gulped and took a slow bite of his cheese rather than answer him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Preview:
> 
> "Oh, um I promised Alya I would help with the blog next time." She mumbled softly over the phone and he felt something click in his mind.
> 
> Boy I knew her BEFORE she was Ladybug…
> 
> Volpina had said that to him. If her words were true and if Marinette really was Ladybug…
> 
> She's my best friend…
> 
> Ladybugs words echoed in his mind.


	11. Chapter 11

Adrien didn't know what to do, his lady and his princess were one in the same and he was completely blind to it until now. When they told him that Marinette could defend herself they were trying to tell him she was Ladybug, hell if he wasn't so jealous back then they could have joined up sooner to take down Fangs Way. Fangs Way who was Kid, Kid who was Marinettes roommate, Marinette who was Ladybug. His Lady, his girlfriend, was in trouble just by being in the same flat as that woman. He couldn't just sit back and let her stay there. He had to do, something. He had to make sure that she was safe. Ladybug was strong but everyone had to sleep sometime and Marinette trusted far too easily.

He sat up from his spot on the bed and looked quickly over to his sleeping kwami who was snoring loudly on the plate of half eaten cheese on his desk. He furrowed his brow and bit down on his thumbnail as his knee bounced up and down while his thoughts raced. He couldn't wake up Plagg just to go check on her as Chat Noir, she had no idea he was even Chat, did she? His foot thumped harder against the floor as he thought back to when they first kissed, then when he admitted his feelings towards her. She certainly acted as if she didn't have a single clue as to who Chat was, she even went so far as to count Chat and himself as two different people. No, she didn't know his secret. He wasn't even sure that he knew Ladybugs but he had such a strong gut feeling that she was Marinette. It was like he had been working on a puzzle for years and now the final piece was in place.

He stood, ready to call out for Plagg to transform him unto his superhero persona when a soft chiming noise coming from his phone had him stopping in his tracks. He moved to stand beside the head of the bed as the phone continued to vibrate and chime away at him. The name 'Princess' was lit up on the screen, startlingly White against Marinettes dark hair as it hovered over a picture of her sleeping at her desk in school. He slowly lifted the device and swiped across his screen to answer the call.

"H-hello?" He asked in a soft whisper.

"H-hi A-A-A-" he smiled at the sound of her nervous voice and moved to sit on his couch as he looked out at the deep darkness of night beyond his window.

"Hello Marinette. How are you doing at your flat?" He asked, not wanting to wait for her to stumble through his name.

"F-fine. Well, I'm in my room. Kid is upset but, Kid is upset that she turned into an, akuma." He heard her sigh softly and raised a brow at her statement.

"Are you worried about her turning again?" He asked softly as he looked to the sleeping Plagg. If she needed him he would transform in a second, sleeping kwami or no sleeping kwami.

"N-no. I can't explain why but I am sure she's not going to be doing that again." Her voice cracked halfway through her statement and he sat up quickly.

"Marinette, are you okay?" He asked as concern laced his voice.

"O-oh y-yeah." She mumbled over the device. He could hear it in her voice that she had been crying, the concern from hearing this was weighing on him so heavily that he was halfway to the sleeping Plagg before he came to his senses and stopped in his tracks. Was it really that hard on her to deal with Kid post akuma?

"You've been crying Mari, what happened?" He urged gently.

"No, I-i mean its no big deal okay."

"Was it something Kid or the boys did?" He asked in a soft whisper.

"No i-" she went silent, causing his heart to pound with worry as his nerves formed into a tight bundle around it in his chest.

"Marinette, you can trust me okay? What happened?" He asked as evenly as he could while fighting the shaking in his voice.

"Alya and I kinda accidentally went by my old place. It was, hard." Marinette finally admitted after his question hung in the air between them.

"Are you okay?" He asked softly.

"I will be." At her words he paced before his windows quickly. He could just transform and go comfort her, but wouldn't she figure out he was Chat then? She, if she was Ladybug, was the one who said they should keep their identities secret. What if showing her who he was caused her problems, especially living with past akuma victims. He bit his thumbnail as the thoughts swirled around in his mind causing his brow to furrow together above his troubled eyes.

"Hey, next time there's an akuma let's just stick together and get away from the attack okay? I'd hate not knowing where you are." He didn't know why he said it, the thoughts swirling around his head like a cyclone were throwing him off his usual calm rational thinking.

"Oh, um I promised Alya I would help with the blog next time." She mumbled softly over the phone and he felt something click in his mind.

_Boy I knew her BEFORE she was Ladybug…_

Volpina had said that to him. If her words were true and if Marinette really was Ladybug…

_She's my best friend…_

Ladybugs words echoed in his mind.

If Marinette was Ladybug then it would make sense for Alya to be Volpina wouldn't it? He groaned softly and heard her gasp over the phone.

"It's j-just a promise that, that I m-made to her yesterday. I'm s-so sorry. N-next time okay?" Her voice was full of the nervous warble that he had grown use to long ago. His eyes slid closed at the questions he so desperately wanted to ask her. Questions that wouldn't be right to ask over the phone.

"That's okay. Just promise me you'll stay safe okay?" He asked softly.

"I promise I will stay safe." He heard a soft giggle and found himself smiling in response to it. She was cheered up at least and he had helped her do that. A soft yawn followed her giggle and he felt his body relax at the sound.

"You're tired." He stated softly.

"I am not, I could talk all night." She insisted around another soft yawn. He chuckled lightly at her words as he made his way to sit down on his bed while she yawned once again.

"Why did you call?" He asked as he laid back, "it's pretty late."

"I just finished my p- homework and I wanted to talk to you before I went to bed." He raised a brow at her slip up, it was the first time he had noticed something like that happening.

_I'm thinking too much about this…_

"We both need to get to sleep though." He sighed as he rubbed his eyes.

_She could have spoke to me every night if she would have just stayed here…_

"I know, goodnight Adrien."

"Goodnight Mari." He heard the beep of the call being disconnected and allowed his phone to fall onto the sheets beside him. His heart pounded against his chest as he began to think of all the similarities between Marinette and Ladybug. They could practically be twins with their hairstyle and color and their eyes were both that beautiful bluebell shade. However Marinette was quiet and shy, a far different personality to his partner.

_Chat Noir is more outgoing and free than Adrien though._

He groaned as he rolled over to tuck a pillow beneath his head in an attempt to get comfortable. He just couldn't be absolutely sure until he asked her, he would have to trust her answer and hold it as a solid truth. His eyes fluttered closed once again as a large dramatic sigh had his shoulders shifting by his neck, he couldn't know for sure. She had called because she was upset about going by her parents old bakery, not because she was worried over an akuma which is what Ladybug would have naturally worried about. His eyes popped open at the thought of the bakery and he glanced over to the black screen of his computer. If Marinette was Ladybug then Chat Noir may be able to get the truth out of her in one very special way.

He moved to his desk and quickly turned on his computer. There would be no sleep for him that night, not if his plans had anything to say about it. He quickly brought up every realtor website in Paris and began the long search for the one that was currently selling his girlfriends old home.

* * *

Marinette yawned into her hand as she stood outside of the school beside Alya. Her school bag had been replaced by a very large backpack with three changes of clothes stuffed down into the bottom of it and her books placed on top. She had called Adrien the night before to see if it would be okay for her to come back to the Agreste mansion but upon hearing his voice she had lost all of her nerve and ended up begging Alya to let her stay with her for a few days. She had not lied to him about Kid being upset she gave into Hawkmoths control, she simply had not told the entire story. Kid had been terrified that she would turn on the young girl while she slept and demanded that she move out, originally the older woman had stated she should live with her grandfather but after a few hours of thought and a long shower she decided that she and the boys could not know where Marinette was living. Marinette had told her it would all be okay and she still trusted the tattoo artist, but the older woman was set in her decision and refused any attempt from the young designer.

"You can still hang out with us or whatever, I just don't want you in any vulnerable state around me until the three of you destroy Hawkmoth once and for all. You may trust me Bug but I don't trust myself." In the end that was what made Marinette softly agree and call Adrien, then Alya when the plan she made to ask him fell through.

She looked over at Alya who was playing with the chain on her necklace, it was all that could be seen as the dark skinned female had decided to tuck the miraculous in to her civilian clothes in case anyone recognized it from her heroic persona. Alya was excited about being a superhero, the exact opposite of how Marinette felt when she was given the responsibility, and you could see this in the bright sparkle in the young woman's eyes. She was right all those years ago, her best friend made a perfect superhero.

"Girl, did you sleep at all last night?" Alya brought her out of her thoughts with her question.

"Mmm, not really. I was too worried about Kid. She's pretty down about everything and is still losing her shop." Marinette shrugged slightly as she spoke before looking down to kick at a pebble by her feet.

"Is that why your coming to my house today? Worried she will turn into an akuma and attack you." Alya leaned forward to study her friends face as she spoke.

"No i, she's worried about that. I am just worried about HER. This can't be easy on her, losing her shop and having to start over." Marinette sighed softly at the thought.

"Is that it though, just worried about Kid?" Alya asked as she nudged her best friends arm with her elbow.

"I don't know what you mean by that." Marinette mumbled softly as she rubbed her arm.

"Girl you practically broke down when we went by your old place yesterday." Alya crossed her arms as she spoke and gave Marinette a serious stare over her glasses.

"It was, hard. I admit it sucks knowing I don't live there anymore but I have to get over it and move on. My parents are okay and I can find a place to stay, I hope." Marinette sighed again and glanced down at her bag where Trixx and Tikki were sharing a cookie as their breakfast, "I'll figure it out alright, and hey when I get my own place we will have a place that we can hang out the four of us." She stated a bit more excitedly as she motioned to her pink purse to include the two Kwamis in their group.

"Well, I got my mom to agree to you staying with us as long as you keep in contact with your parents and keep going to school. So you know, take your time girl." Alya shrugged and draped one arm over her best friends shoulders after speaking and squeezed her lightly to herself as Marinette gave her a small shaky smile. They stayed like that for a few minutes until the brunette noticed her own boyfriend headed their way.

"Hey babe!" Nino called as Alta's arm slipped off of Marinettes shoulder and she rushed to his side to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. They linked their fingers together and made their way up the stairs where she waited for them to join her. The three smiled at one another as they stood outside the school waiting for the first bell to ring. Marinette was early again only due to Kid bringing her to school on her motorcycle as she made the trip across the city to look at cheaper flats for her to rent while she rebuilt her company. Marinette felt bad for the woman, she had lost everything that she had worked so hard to gain in her short life and it caused the young designer to worry that maybe her own dreams would end in the same way.

"You coming Mari?" Her attention was pulled to the couple beside her as Alya asked the question. She shook her head slowly and gave her friends a sweet classic Marinette smile.

"I was going to wait for Adrien." She stated as she looked to the road behind her.

"Oh, uh he isn't coming to school today." She turned her stare to Nino who was scratching the back of his neck slowly, "he stayed up really late last night to do business stuff for his dad or something and called this morning to tell me he wouldn't make it to school." The girls glanced at one another in concern; when Marinette had called Alya the night before she was positive that Adrien had gone to bed, he had told her that he would see her at school today had he not? She bit her bottom lip gently as she fought against the worried questions that bubbled up to the forefront of her mind.

"Mari?" Alta's face was full of concern but Marinette waved it away as if she wasn't bothered at all. It was odd that he hadn't at least texted her that he wouldn't make it to school but maybe he was so tired he forgot. He could be also be sleeping and just too exhausted to text her. She knew full well how being sleepy could mess with someone's eyes as many of her discarded designs had been done in a sleep deprived state. She would just have to trust that he would be back to school tomorrow and go on with her day like usual.

"Let's just get to class then, it's not like we can do anything about it right? How about we visit him at lunch to see if he's feeling better? That way I can see Maman and Papa to!" She smiled the most energetic smile she could muster and slid past the couple to lead them into the school.

Her school day went by very slowly at the start. Alya and Nino sat in front of her and Nathaniel stayed in his usual seat leaving her alone at her desk. The empty chair beside her cause her to fidget and worry over Adrien even as she fought against the urge to sleep herself, attempting to pay attention to the lesson all the while. Her eyes found the clock on more than one occasion and she groaned inwardly at how slowly it was moving. She yawned after her last glance and felt her burning tired eyes slowly closing as she leaned her cheek on her palm and tried very hard to focus on her teachers drowning voice.

A thump from behind her caused Alya to turn her head just enough to see her best friends snoozing peacefully on her desk. She chuckled softly and turned to lock eyes with her boyfriend who was staring at her with his brow raised in concern. She gave him a playful smirk and rolled her eyes while motioning towards the sleeping girl before turning back to face the teacher. Marinette needed some sleep after the battles she had been through, both physical and mental, that she had gone through the last twenty four hours.

* * *

Chat Noir stood in the empty building slowly spinning the ring of keys around one finger as his eyes scanned the familiar yet different room surrounding him. Gone was the the glass cases that housed the different pastries and baked goods, gone was the counter where transactions had been made countless times over the years, gone was the sweet smell that he had come to associate with Marinette. It took hours to find the place and even longer to create a bank account for Chat Noir and transfer enough of his savings to it to buy the old bakery but he had done it. He had purchased it as soon as he could. The two weeks he had to wait were excruciating but finally it was his, well theirs. He planned to turn this into a place that they could come to reenergize after their miraculous transformations released, and just in case Marinette wasn't Ladybug he would have her live in her old home to keep it up while they were away. It was perfect, either way he was helping out his partners and his princess.

He made his way upstairs and surveyed the flat above the shop. There was a large room that served as the families living room that he could make a meeting room and/or living room for his princess. The next door was a large bedroom that he assumed belonged to her parents, then a bathroom and another smaller room that could have been their office. He knew that the room upstairs was Marinettes old room, the one with the balcony through a trap door. Behind him was the kitchen that connected to the living space in an open concept design. He never paid much attention to her home before, but it was really lovely. Even if the empty rooms caused a sinking feeling in his chest.

_I still think of it as her home…_

He climbed the stairs and slipped through the trapdoor leading into what was once her bedroom and felt himself sigh as he released his transformation. Plagg flew out and turned to beg for cheese only to stop short when he saw the look on his chosens face. His head was bent forward slightly which caused a shadow to fall over his half lidded eyes and his Neely alway perfectly kept smile was morphed into a sad line that ran the length of his lips. Adrien was troubled and he could only assume it was due to the same thing that had his little kitten troubled the day that the five attacked the city, the day Volpina teamed up with them.

"You okay kid?" He asked as he hovered before the blonde. Adrien didn't answer him right away, instead he turned to the small ladder like set of stairs that lead up to a now empty landing under the skylight that searched as a trap door to the balcony. He moved to sit on the third step up and let out a long sigh as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"I don't know Plagg." He stated softly as he looked ahead of himself to the circular window that was now just above his eye level, "I mean, I should be mad right? But it's not like I haven't done some things that she couldn't get mad at. As both Chat and Adrien. That is all assuming she's even Ladybug, and if she isn't I am an even worse person because I still think about my lady all the time. I worry about her because she gets hurt during our fights a lot and I can't help thinking that if she's Marinette, and most of the time it's my fault and- gah I'm rambling." He hung his head and grabbed it between his hands as his thoughts raced. His kwami simply watched for a moment in silence before letting a long groan pass from his lips.

"You are putting too much thought into this and not thinking enough about your actions!" He exclaimed after sucking in a large breath, "stop eating yourself up over this and just ask her. What is your plan here anyway, gonna judge Ladybugs reaction to this place to add to the torture you're giving yourself?"

"No!" Adrien shouted before rubbing his eyes and looking away from Plagg, "maybe, I dunno. I didn't think that far ahead." He mumbled afterwards as his face grew hot. He could hear the floating cat like being sigh dramatically even as it landed on his hair. Plagg wasn't usually this into Adriens personal life which caused him to feel like he was close to discovering who Ladybug actually was, or perhaps his guess was correct and he could finally end his search for her true identity.

"Okay I give up. I'm bored of all this and I want some cheese." The kwami complained loudly as he lounged in his chosens blonde locks.

"All you ever think about is cheese." The boy complained, Plagg shrugged in response as he let himself sink lower into the blonde locks.

"The only thing complicated about cheese is it's flavor." The kwami answered around a bored yawn. Adrien stood and began to pace across the floor as he thought over his situation. He knew Marinette was staying with Alya, she had been for a couple weeks now, so it would be really hard to go to her as Chat without the brunette asking questions that he would rather not answer. He couldn't bring her as Adrien because then how would he explain that this was suppose to be for her and the three heroes to use, her to live in and them to rest after battle and plan out how to find Hawkmoth. He would have to wait until the next 'meeting of heroes' as Volpina had dubbed it, he still didn't trust the fox themed woman but Ladybug assured him many times that she was fine the last time they met for patrol, but then what if Ladybug wasn't Marinette? How could he get the young designer to her childhood home without raising suspicion as Chat or Adrien?

"I give up. I'm an idiot, a stupid stupid idiot." He groaned as he leaned his head against the wall where her desk use to be. He heard Plagg snicker at his words and felt himself growl lowly at the quivering kwami, "at least SOMEONE is getting enjoyment out of my pain." He moaned angrily and then heard his kwami fall into full on laughter.

"Calm down kid it will be fine. Just show the place to the girls and offer to hire Marinette as a live in housekeeper, that way it won't be weird for you to approach her as Chat." Adrien blinked in surprise at Plaggs words, it was actually a great plan and one that would fix a huge block in his own ideas. He pouted as the thoughts of how stuck up his kwami would be if he agreed with him before sighing and nodding his head.

"I- guess you're right." He grumbled as he stuffed his hands in the pockets of his jeans. He turned and slid down the wall until he was seated with his back against it and pulled out a good sized chunk of the black cats favorite cheese and passed it up to him. He would have to wait for the glutton to finish eating then transform so he could leave without raising any suspicion from anyone who may have seen him enter the empty building. The silence that followed as Plagg munched happily on the cheese was almost peaceful as his thoughts turned to Marinette, sweet shy Marinette who had taken notes on every class and made copies for him during the three days of school that he had missed. It would not be bad if she ended up being Ladybug, he actually found himself smiling at the thought. She had been in love with Adrien for a while, a fact Alya told him soon after the incident with Nathaniel in class, and she seemed to like Chat, at least enough to let him kiss her before he decided to pursue her as Adrien. He was sure she liked all of him, both in the mask and out of it, even if she actively stayed loyal to Adrien she still spoke to Chat as if they could be close friends.

_Boy I knew her BEFORE she was Ladybug…_

The memory popped into his brain and caused him to clench his fists at his sides and grind his teeth together. Volpina had not been at Ladybugs side all those years, she had not been by her through the blood sweat and tears during each and every attack that they fought. If she could know who she was then what excuse did she have to keep their identities secret now? Jealousy burned its way through his body to settle in a hot ball at his chest. It wasn't fair to him that the two females would keep this secret especially since he had been the one beside Ladybug the entire time. He should have been the first one to find out, it was only fair considering how much they had done for each other before the fox wormed her way into their small group. He had to keep cool, he had to stay calm and continue on like it didn't phase him until the time that he could prove to his lady that the fox was nothing to trust.

"Are you ready to go yet?" He growled up at the black cat kwami on his head.

"Yeah," Plagg sighed after swallowing the last chunk of cheese, "don't get snappy. I'm ready."

"Plagg, claws out." His words were carried on a soft sigh as he realized his friend atop his head did not deserve his angry tones. Green light surrounded him as he felt the warm bubbling sensation of the transformation coming over him. Chat Noir stood and glance around the room once again before snatching the keys to the building off of the floor and shoving them into his pocket. He closed his eyes as another sigh escaped through his nose, he had to calm down. He had no reason to be so angry right that second, hell he had just become a homeowner after all. With one final look around the empty room he left out of the trapdoor in the ceiling, leaving the empty home to finish his list of to-dos before meeting on the tower for their patrols that night.

* * *

Ladybug leaned against Volpinas back as they sat at the edge of the top of the Eiffel Tower. The sun had gone down a few minutes before and the girls took the time to watch the stars slowly fade into sight against the backdrop of a velvet black sky. It was peaceful for her, even more so knowing that the girl just behind her would be there for her if anything strange happened. She hadn't been a part of their group for very long but Volpina had been a huge help to her both in and out of the mask. Not only had she picked up some of the slack during patrols she also gave her a place to stay while she searched for a job and a flat writhing her price range. She closed her eyes as she thought of how lucky she was to be partners with her best friend and Chat. He had been extra diligent since the fox themed heroine joined their team and she allowed herself to think that they were both a bit better off with Volpina beside them.

"Hey bug, did you ever notice that the two stars to the left of the moon seem to come out first?" Volpinas voice broke through her happy thoughts.

"Hmm, not really. I guess I always figured the North Star was the one to appear first." Ladybug stated around a soft shrug. She looked up to the two stars that Volpina mentioned and felt a small smile cross her lips, "hey if you include the moon your stars form a smiley face!" She called out excitedly as she pointed up to them. She felt Volpina shift against her back to get a better view of the moon and stars and giggled when the other girls long hair brushed against the back of her neck lightly.

"Ooh I see it girl. That's pretty cool." Volpinas voice was full of just as much excitement as Ladybugs as she studied the design that the blackette had pointed out to her.

"I wonder where Chat is?" Ladybug grumbled as she looked down to study the city below them, "he's usually the first one here during patrols."

"Are you really worried about him, he can handle himself just like we can." The fox heroine stated with a loud huff. Ladybug glared at her quickly before rolling her eyes and placing her fingertips against her temple.

"I know he can take care of himself, just like we can. I can still worry about him though right? We've been friends and partners for a long time after all." She sighed as she lowered her head slowly to look down at the lights sparkling below them.

"I am  _pawsitively_  happy to hear that my lady." Both girls turned quickly to look up at Chat who was lounging on two metal beams crossed before each other with a smug grin on his face. Ladybugs face fell into the annoyed expression that he was use to seeing after dropping a pun into their casual conversation while Volpinas eyes grew to the size of saucers and she looked between the two nervously.

"Good of you to show up Kitty, you're late." Ladybug stated flatly as she crossed her arms before her chest. He smirked at her annoyed look as he stood and extended his baton before using it as a pole to slide down to their level. He stepped up to them as he retracted his baton back to its portable size and slid it in its holster on his back. He stuffed his hands in his pockets as he stopped just before Ladybug who was still sitting down with her arms crossed before her. A large cheshire grin spread across his face as he looked down into her eyes.

"I can assure you I have a  _purrticularly_  good reason." He stated around a soft chuckle.

"Oh really  _pussy cat_ , and what reason would that be?" Both green and blue eyes turned towards Volpina as she spoke. She was pretending to check her nails rather than glance at them, "what?" She deadpanned.

"I uh," he scratched his hair and turned towards the girl beside him as he smiled meekly, "I uh, saved up some money and got a surprise for you, both of you." He stayed around his nervous laughing.

"A surprise." Ladybug giggled as she watched her best friend immediately perk up at his words. The stars shone brightly in the fox heroines eyes as she bounced lightly before them.

"Where is this surprise Chaton?" She asked as her giggles died away.

"A bit away, care for a run in the night my lady, fox?" He asked as he removed his hands from his pockets to give Ladybug a low bow. The girls looked at each other wryly as he tightened himself to his normal playful slouch that he had taken to using while in his suit. Volpina shrugged slightly and nodded towards the blackette, telling her to take the lead on this decision. Ladybug sighed at her best friends actions and turned back to look up at Chat before standing and pulling her yoyo from her hip in preparation.

"Lead on Chaton." She said sweetly with a small smirk on her lips.

They were all rushing across the rooftops then. Volpina would fly for a bit and land to run beside Marinette as the girls attempted to figure out what his surprise was. What would he need to save money to get them and why, it wasn't like he owed his partners anything. Ladybug owed him her life from more than one occasion. Her heart pounded in her ears as she rushed on, following the flicking black tail of her long time partner and friend. It wasn't until they passed over the roof of her school and past the park that rested nearby it that her chest began to hurt, not from exertion but from the emotional wall that she felt slam against her chest. She paused at the edge of the small building across the street from her old home and felt her hands shoot up to cover her mouth as he hopped down to land before the door and pulled out a ring of keys that she had never noticed before. Her eyes grew to the size of saucers as they connected with the bright green hues of his own after he turned to look up at her. Tears stung the edges as she felt Volpina land beside her and she had to squeeze the shut to fight back the tears that threatened her.

"Bug?" Volpina asked softly as she rested a hand on her shoulder gently.

"I, I'm sorry." She chocked out around her tears before turning and rushing back towards the tower. She couldn't be there, she couldn't be in her home that wasn't hers anymore. Why did Chat have to buy her parents old place as if it were no big deal? Why did he have to get that place rather than anything else? Her feet pounded over the tiles of the rooftops and her yoyo cut through the air as she rushed away from them. She felt someone behind her but refused to turn to look, if it was Volpina she wouldn't have to worry but if it was Chat she would have to come up with some reason for her quick departure.

"Bug!" She heard her best friend call out to her and rolled to the ground from mid swing to slow herself down. She allowed herself to be wrapped up in Volpinas arms as she sobbed into her palms, "shh, shh girl. It's okay. It's not like he knew." Volpinas soft voice drifted into her ears as she attempted to calm the crying girl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello dear readers,
> 
> So we are all caught up with the chapters I have written and posted on FFN now. I wanted to take this time to thank each and every one of you for reading this story. I love writing and I love hearing from others so the outpouring of support I have received since joining this site has truly made this transition a wonderful one. I do not plan on leaving FFN, but I did want to spread my wings and post on more sites than just one so I could meet new people and hear from more readers who I love. I write for you my dear readers and seeing how supportive the ones on this website have been gives me the inspiration to keep writing on stories that you haven't even had the chance to read quite yet. I humbly thank each and every one of you for being with me during these 11 chapters and I hope you will be there for the next 11 and on as well.
> 
> Much Love;
> 
> Ad


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Read the AN at the end of this chapter for a bit of an explanation...

Kid looked up from the folder full of files on the cheapest real estate she could afford to convert into her new shop as the flight from Americas landing was announced over the PA system. She had been waiting in the uncomfortable metal chair for hours, since she had gotten off the phone with her grandfather, and finally the wait was over. She stood and made her way to join the small crowd forming near the terminal and watched the plane slowly make its way to a stop through the large wall made up of windows. Her hands clenched around the folder as her heart pounded against her rib-cage in an unsteady manner. He was back in Paris, her little brother was home, but he had been gone for so long that she doubted he even considered it home in the first place. She scanned the faces of the people piling out of the plane and strained her memory for an image of his face.

_He had been young when they were separated by their greedy aunt, barely five years old with big silver eyes and a head of unruly black hair. He looked a lot like their father back then, everyone said so, yet they often mentioned that he had the heart of their mother. A kind yet shy boy who didn't even struggle against the older woman who yanked him from their grandfathers home twelve years ago, he would be seventeen now and she had it under good authority that he had grown into a tall quiet young man._

What she wasn't expecting was the young man with long black hair that cowed about his shoulders and half his face like a waterfall, wearing a dark black leather trench coat that dusted the floor when he walked and having what appeared to be a permanent scowl set in his now deep grey eyes.

" _Cain?_ " She asked as the boy approached her while sliding a dark grey wool skull cap over his head.

"Yeah?" He looked up slowly and their eyes locked. A moment of confusion passed over his face before he blinked and his eyes were cold and lifeless looking once again, " _Chi?_ " He asked uncertainly.

"Call me Kid kiddo." She stated with a warm smile. He simply shrugged and turned his head towards baggage claim without another word. The glint of light off of a shiny black feather hanging from his ear caught her eye and she felt her smile slip into a worried frown. So he ended up getting the Raven Miraculous from their aunt in the end. She wondered why her grandfather even gave it to the greedy woman in the first place as she followed him while he moved to gather his luggage.

"My friends in New York called me Crow." He stated after he slung a duffle bag over one shoulder and turned to look at her once again, "Aunt Tara told me that you were having problems with your business before I left." He added as he looked around them, scanning the crowd with his cold eyes.

"Oh, uh yeah. You know the fashion designer Agreste?" She asked as they made their way towards the doors leading out of the airport.

"Not really, I don't follow that kind of thing." He shrugged and adjusted the duffel bag on his shoulder as he spoke.

"Oh well, all you need to know is he's a rich jerk who bought my shop out from under me, pops did tell me not to rent but I didn't listen, anyway it's all good now. Ladybug helped me work through some stuff and all." She scratched her chin and watched him from the corner of her eye. He had peeked up at the mention of Ladybug and looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

*" _Sounds like someone needs to kick his pretentious ass_."* she raised a brow at his muttered English but decided not to push it, she personally didn't know enough English to tell what he was saying but could make out it had to do with an ass of some kind. Her look didn't go unnoticed by him and he smirked and shrugged his shoulders once again.

"I hate to be that guy but, you probably want to use French from now on." She sighed as they crossed through the sliding glass doors and out into the Parisian sunlight. His smirk turned into a frown and he lowered his head slowly as a red tint dusted his cheeks. He scratched his chin and grumbled to himself about being so far away from home as he followed her to a waiting rust red pickup truck.

"Thought you drove a motorcycle." He stated as he tilted his head slightly to study the vehicle.

"I do, this is Kevos. He offered to help me pick you up." She stated as a man wearing a plaid red and orange shirt and sporting a brunette man bun hung his head out from the drivers side of the truck and shot the boy a friendly wave.

"Kid he's adorable! Look at that hair!" Kevo cooed around a hearty laugh and she noticed her brothers cheeks darken once again before he looked down quickly. She raised an eyebrow at his actions and felt her lips pull into a small smile.

"Don't let him see you blushing or he will go out of his way to embarrass you in front of Mari later." She whispered after turning her back to her best friend so he couldn't read her lips.

"Mari?" Crow was obviously confused by the word which made her smile even more.

"It's what Ladybug goes as outside the mask. She doesn't live with me anymore but she still comes over to hang out almost daily. I told her to come a little late today since I was picking you up." He physically paled at her words and she shrugged off the sight, wondering just why the mention of Ladybug would cause him to look so terrified. She didn't have to wonder for long however because his next statement cleared it up for her perfectly.

"I thought I wouldn't be seeing them outside the mask." His words prompted his kwami, a small creature resembling a jet black bird who's eyes blended in perfectly with its feathers, to poke its head out of his coats collar.

"Who even said that they would let you join them? Plagg certainly won't be happy to have me around again." Caww, she remembered the grump of a kwami from her youth and smiled brightly down at him as he spoke.

"They have to let me join them! I know more about this then they do certainly. I've had you since I was ten." Crow huffed back at the raven kwami without a heartbeat in between their words. Kid chuckled as the two continued to argue and led them into the truck. Kevo didn't give the kwami a second glance as he cranked the vehicle and pulled out of the airport parking lot. She knew that it would be an interesting day, for her at least.

* * *

" **Marinette watch out!** " She barely registered Alyas voice before she was slipping on a piece of newspaper someone had left on the stairs leading up to the floor her old apartment rested on. She waved her arms at her sides as she tipped forward and squeezed her eyes shut tightly, preparing for the inevitable fall that would follow. However she did not fall for long as a hard muscled back met her face. A blush bloomed across her cheeks instantly and she began to stammer as she pushed herself off of the person she had sent sprawling onto the floor.

"Hey Bug, I thought I was the only late one." She peeked up immediately at the deep yet playful male voice that filled her ears. Suddenly she wasn't a stuttering mess anymore and was instead wrapping her arms tightly around his waist as a happy squeak left her lips.

"Chrissy! It's been too long!" She and Alya cried out as one.

"It's been a week kiddos." He chuckled as he ruffled Marinettes hair playfully. Alya huffed beside her until she received the same treatment from the man who had come to be much like an elder brother to the two girls.

"Yeah but you take us to the good places for lunch, Kid just thinks crackers and beer will do." Alya stated as she joined in on the group hug. He chuckled and shook his head slightly as he steered the two girls towards the front door of Kids flat, it had been a bit over a month and there had been no akuma sightings really since Fangs Way. He was grateful to the two of them and offered to pay for lunch a few days after the battle and had been doing so on each of their patrol days ever since.

"So has Chat asked Mari to move in and watch over the bakery?" He asked as they neared the painted door. Marinette paused long enough for him to sense she was uncomfortable with the questions and looked to Alya who simply shook her head slowly.

"Even if he wanted to the girl has refused to tell anyone but me where she's living now. Of course he doesn't need to know the reason behind that." Alyas sly grin was not missed by Marinette who stuck her tongue out at her.

"I should have just stayed with Kid for all the sleep I get lately." She rolled her eyes at her best friends feigned gasp and felt a small smile creep across her lips.

"Uh, I don't think that would be a good idea since your room is taken." Chrissy stated as he rang the buzzer in their coded way. She was about to ask what he was talking about when the door creeped open to reveal a messy head of tousled black hair that settled over a pair of deep grey orbs that Marinette immediately felt herself being swallowed up in. The orbs- er, eyes, belonged to a boy who seemed to be around her age and looked like he could be Kids doppelgänger or even her son. His heart shaped face and long eyelashes gave him a soft feminine look, even if the stern set of his brow and thin line to his lips made him appear older by comparison.

"What?" He demanded in a voice that she vaguely recognized. It was smiley yet gravely and made her think of loud bass and long guitar solos for some strange reason.

"Geez Crow nice to see you again to." Chrissy stated as he ruffled the boys hair and moved past him into the flat. The girls tilted their heads in confusion at this action and stared at the boy who stared back at them.

"Are you coming in or what?" He snapped as he stepped back away from the door to give them room. Alya cast her a sideways glance that told the young designer she didn't approve of his attitude before striding into the room, "miss Fox." He stated as she passed him.

"Uh, um, I-" Marinette began.

"Ladybug I really can't leave the door open all day." He deadpanned as he rolled his eyes at her and stepped back even further into the room. She lowered her gaze from his cold dead stare and stepped past him slowly as she felt the heat rising to her cheeks. Halfway into the living room she paused as his hushed whisper reached her ears, "thank you for helping my sister." She turned to face him fully and opened her lips to explain that it wasn't just her who helped Kid, but was stopped by a pair of strong arms wrapping around her chest as she was pulled backwards into the much plumper chest of the woman who had snuck up behind her.

"Bug! I see you met my brother. He just got in today." Kids low alto voice soothed Marinette and she found herself smiling brightly up at the heavily pierced woman.

"He looks a lot like you." She stated with a warm laugh that bubbled up from her chest. Kid did not wait for her brother to respond to this show of affection before she dragged Marinette backwards into her bedroom. The room was full of boxes, the sight causing Marinettes heart to drop into her stomach. Kid was in the process of moving to a new cheaper flat that was close to her school, her business was downgrading and she would be working out of her first floor now much like Marinettes family had before they too were foreclosed on.

"Just sit anywhere, the boys are having one final gaming tournament to say goodbye to the place." Kid stated as she lounged across a few boxes. Alya was already there, leaning over Chrissy's right shoulder as he struggled to beat Kevo in Ultimate Mechanics Strike 3. Marinette stood in the doorway awkwardly as she took in the sight, how could they all act so normal when Kids life was literally in boxes all around them? She could feel her pulse quickening in her head as she studied each and every box around her, taking note of Lamb Lamb sitting on top of one filled with Kids bedclothes. She didn't feel she belonged in this place, she shouldn't have come, it was bad enough that Kid was suffering like this but she knew the older woman wouldn't show it around others. She had to find a way to get out of there before the lump growing in her throats was joined by the tears that already stung as they threatened to fall from her eyes.

"Hey sis we're out of pasta and I am not eating your crap for dinner." Her eyes widened as Crows voice filled the room.

"Dammit, it's like being thirteen all over again! Little kids aren't allowed in here Cain!" Kid called out with a big goofy smile plastered on her face. Anyone could tell just by looking that she was happy to have her little brother back again.

"Whatever, I'm going shopping." He stated in a cold flat tone as he crossed his arms and stared down his sister, "just wanted to know if you wanted anything." He grumbled after a few seconds as he broke their small staring contest.

"Do you even know where the store is?" Kid chuckled as she mimicked his crossed arm stature.

"I can show him around!" Marinette called out a bit loudly as she noticed him frown all the more at his sisters words. Alya looked up from the screen and shot her a curious glance that she waved away as her face flushed light pink as she realized how her outburst must have seemed to them, "I- I mean I do know the place, Paris, heh, lived here all my life and all." She stammered quickly as his eyes locked onto her.

"You're weird." He stated flatly before turning his back on everyone in the room and taking a step out of the door, "well, come on then Bug girl." He called back after a few seconds of her standing there in shock.

"Weird is a good thing to us Fengs." Kid cried out through her laughter when Marinette ran to catch up to him.

"My passport says I'm a Smith." She had reach him just in time to hear him grumble the words as he slid his arms into a long black trench coat. Worry filled her as she pondered the siblings relationship. Kid seemed over the moon to have him around her, yet he acted as if he couldn't stand the young woman. She found herself pondering why he disliked his older sister so much as she followed him out of the building and through the darkening streets of Paris.

* * *

Chat leapt from rooftop to rooftop as the crisp night air flowed through his hair. Alya had mentioned earlier that day that she was joining Marinette on a trip to her ex roommates house so they could help the woman pack up. When he asked where they would be meeting she simply shrugged him off and told him that if the young designer wanted him to know where she was staying then he would know. It was so frustrating to him; first his Lady kept secret friends from him only to bring those friends into the group, then his girlfriend kept secrets as important as where she was staying from him. He needed this patrol to clear his head after nearly a month of trying and failing to figure out if his hunch was true. Of course if Marinette was Ladybug then he would be ecstatic? He would be in love with only one girl then, but at the same time if they were on in the same then that would only mean she was keeping two very large secrets from him that she trusted to another.

"I said I would carry the damn bags, stop being stubborn." He stopped running across a rooftop and his ears perked up at the vaguely familiar male voice. Where had he heard it before?

"Me stubborn? Look at you! I'm carrying two bags to your six so just shut it and walk." He felt his eyes nearly pop out of his head at the sound of Marinettes voice. She was so full of confidence and sass, and while talking to another boy no less.

"Who do you think you are, my mother? Let me carry my own fucking bags for two stupid blocks."

"Oh what are you scared Kid will see you letting me carry two stinking bags and think less of you?"

"I don't give a flying fuck what Kid thinks! Give me the bags Marinette! You don't have to try to help everyone and I don't need your help! I don't want it! Why don't you just scuttle back to wherever you came fr-" a loud echoing smack cut off the male voice as Chat finally located where they were coming from. A tall dark haired boy in a black trench coat who had three bags of groceries draped on each arm was holding his cheek as he glared down at Chats pigtailed princess who was staring up at him with her fists clenched around the handles of two bags and placed firmly on her hips.

"Stop it, you stop it right now. This isn't America and I am not some little girl who's going to cower at you if I think you're angry at me. I said I would help you and I will weather you like it or not." Chat leaned against a chimney as he studied her annoyed and slightly red face from afar, "now you can either take my help like a man or you can spend today running from a black and purple butterfly because you can't keep your stupid anger in check. I thought you were like Kid but obviously you are a case of nurture over nature."

"Sh-shut up. You don't even know what I've been through in America."

"You're right, because I totally didn't try to ask you in the deli isle." She huffed as she turned and continued on her way towards Kids place. The boy grumbled something that Chat could not make out as he rubbed his cheek and looked down at his feet. The black clad superhero was just about to leave when the other male looked up and locked a pair of cold grey eyes on Chats glowing green ones. The superhero felt his eyes widen then narrow as the other males lips pulled into a devious smile.

"You want to be called Mari right?" He called out as he looked away from Chat. Marinette stopped short of the curb and turned to look wryly at the boy.

"Yes?" It sounded like a question more than an answer.

"Well, Mari, when I uh go to your school call me Crow alright." He was running to catch up with her now and Chat was fallowing each of his steps on the rooftops above, "you're annoying, don't get me wrong, but I think we could be good friends like you and my sister." Chat could feel a low growl escape him as the male, Crow, draped his arm across Marinettes shoulders.

"Now who's weird." Her words were cold but the soft chuckle that followed told Chat she really didn't mean it. The strange male joined in and soon they were both chuckling as they crossed the pedestrian crossing while chatting about things that the cat themed male couldn't quite make out.

Chat followed the two of them until they made their way into Kids building then simply sat on a roof overlooking it waiting to see his princess leave. The sun dragged slowly across the sky as he waited and he passed his time wondering just who the strange new male was in her life. He said he would be attending school with them so he supposed he could corner him as Adrien and tell him to leave her alone, but wouldn't that raise questions that he was no where near ready to answer? The day turned slowly into dusk as he pondered these thoughts and he could hear Plagg complaining in the back of his mind already about how tired he was of holding the transformation. With a sigh he leapt down into an alleyway to detransform and feed the cranky kwami before heading home.

"Took you long enough!" Plagg snapped as he floated out of Adriens ring.

"Sorry, patrol was a bit-" the blonde began as he searched for a slice of cheese to give the floating black cat.

"Don't even make up excuses kid, I saw you spying on you're girlfriend and I felt your jealousy." Plagg snapped as he crossed his arms, "all month you've been sneaking around and getting yourself worked up over a problem that could be solved by, Meow?" Adrien took a step back as he watched Plaggs eyes widen and the small black cat creature actually acting like he looked. He could feel a cold sweat dampening his brow as he slowly turned his head to face whoever had caught him talking to his kwami, excuses already racing through his mind as he did so.

"Oh hell no." Alya stated as she stood there with her arms crossed before her chest.

"I-I can explain." Adrien stammered as he moved to hide Plagg from the dark skinned girl who's eyes were already narrowing at him angrily.

"Oh please do Chat Noir, explain to me how you could toy around with my best friend before I kick your ass." She snapped as she took a step closer to him.

"I never toyed with her!" He exclaimed before looking down quickly to avoid her gaze, "I wasn't trying to hurt her I- i-"

"Oh Alya can't you just let him process this before he blows a fuse?" He looked up quickly to see a fox kwami floating beside Alyas head as the girl stared him down.

"Trixx, great now he knows who I am to." Alya huffed and glared at her own kwami before turning back to Adrien with the same cold glare, "do tell me how buying her old place and flaunting it as Chat Noir wouldn't hurt her." She stated in a cold flat voice as her fists clenched dangerously.

"So she is Ladybug?" His heart swelled with joy even as his head told him he should be afraid of the very angry girl before him, "I just, she needed a place and I wanted to-" he sighed and covered his eyes with one hand as Plagg floated down to rest on his shoulder, "I wanted to give her her home back." He felt his eyes water as he spoke, "you can't tell her who I am, she doesn't know that I am Chat and I need to tell her myself." He was red faced and sweating by the end of his small speech, but Alya was at least standing less threateningly before him.

"I'll tell her." She sighed.

"Wait don't-" he began urgently but she simply held up her hand to cut him off.

"I'll tell her that Chat bought the place with her as Marinette in mind. I will get her moved in and set it up where she watches over the place during the day for the 'superheros'" she made air quotations around the word before continuing, "you have a week, seven days from now, to tell her who you are so all the shit can end and we can be a team or I will tell her myself that Chat and you are one in the same. Got that." She moved close enough to poke his chest roughly as she spoke and he rubbed the spot as he nodded slowly. She turned and walked out of the alley calmly without saying another word to him and as he watched her go the weight of the timeline he had been given weighed on his shoulders, causing him to slouch sadly against the wall beside him.

* * *

He received a text from Alya shortly after he got home that night, she wanted him to come to the park as Chat after school and give Marinette the keys to the old bakery. She added that he could reveal himself to her at that time but he chose to ignore that suggestion as he pulled himself into his shower, ignoring Sabines calls as she stepped into his bedroom looking for him to take him to dinner. He had been eating a lot better since his girlfriends parents started working for him, but he wondered how long they would stick around after finding out what he did for her. They may want to join her in their old home and he would not stop them if that were the case.

His eyes closed as the water hit his face and he heard the door shut behind Sabine as she exited the room. He ran his hands through his hair a few times before letting out an exhausted sigh. Marinette was Ladybug, Alya (who was defiantly Volpina) confirmed this for him. So why did he feel so scared to tell her who he was? Would she reject him after finding out he was indeed Chat Noir? Did she even have any feelings towards Chat anymore after being with Adrien for so long?

"You look exhausted kid." Plagg stared around a bite of cheese.

"In more ways than one." He sighed as he leaned against the wall of his shower.

* * *

" _It's cold~_ " Crow complained as he stood between Alya and Marinette later that night, "isn't it supposed to be like summer here? Come on." He frowned as he nestled himself further into his long trench coat and gave the raven haired girl a stern pout.

"Are you sure your sister deserves the name Kid and not you?" Alya asked as she chuckled lightly. He continued to cast his pouting face at Marinette rather than look at the girl who was currently picking on him.

"In New York I would just be in my nice warm apartment around this time of night." He stated firmly. This time the small ravenette laughed lightly at his words while she covered her lips with one hand.

"In New York its daytime right now." She stated as her laughter died down into giggles.

"You are not helping out at all bug." He grumbled as he crossed his arms momentarily, only to shove his hands back into the warmth that the pockets of his coat shortly after. The three of them were currently standing in an abandoned alleyway, hidden from prying eyes, so that the girls could witness his miraculous transformation. Marinette was actually freezing as well, hence her choice to bring two scarves and a pair of mittens on top of her wool coat that she had reviewed the last Christmas. She could only assume that his kwami being a bird affected him in much the same way as her kwami being a bug did to her. Long story short, this bug hated the cold weather with a passion.

"Get it over with and give me some candy please." Caww stated through his chattering beak as he nuzzled into his chosens neck for warmth.

"Fine, Caww, transform me." He was covered in what appeared to be feathers made of shadows themselves before they faded away to show him in a skintight suit with patterns of feathers engrained into it. A hooded cape rested on his shoulders as a equally dark mask rested over his eyes, forming a beak like shape as it rested over his nose. He lifted the hood from his shoulders and quickly draped it over his head to preserve some warmth from his own body heat and followed this action by pulling what appeared to be two grappling hooks that were similar to a birds talons from his hips.

"Nice~" Alya practically purred, "what are you called, like this?" She asked as she motioned to his entire body with her hand.

"Oh, uh, my name in New York was Raven." He scratched his chin with one of his hooks as he spoke, "but I dunno if I'll use it here." He looked down as he pondered his own words, missing the shrug that the girls shared between themselves. Marinette was about to speak up when an of beeping sound filled the alleyway. He gave them a sympathetic smile as he pushed the ends of his hooks together and pressed a hidden button to reveal a screen on their joined part. A relatively cute girl an a deep green mask appeared on the screen, she did not look happy in the least.

*"Raven, where the hell have you been for the last week? You can't just slither away without warning my little bird boy."* She stated before hissing slightly at the sight of the two girls looking over his shoulder, *"what the hell? Who are they?"*

"English?" He heard Marinette whisper to Alya over his shoulder, he had to ignore it though or face even more of his old partners wrath.

*"H-hey Viper what's up? I uh, I'm not really in New York anymore, I kinda sorta moved to France."* he stated in English as he nudged the girls away with his elbows.

*"France! What the hell! First of all why didn't you tell me, second of all WHY THE HELL DID YOU MOVE ACROSS THE FUCKING WORLD ASSHOLE!"* Viper exclaimed from the screen.

"She's a snake so hissy fits are a given." He shrugged at the two girls beside him as they giggled at his words.

*"You just told them I'm throwing a hissy fit didn't you!"* Viper accused as she narrowed her eyes at him. He did a double take and raised a brow at her when she yelled this, Viper didn't speak French did she, *"Fucking knew it! You're a jerk in multiple languages!"* she yelled the words once again.

*"Love you too Viper."* he grumbled as he rolled his eyes, *"Is something wrong? I can't really help from here."* he added as he watched her lower her head to hide her face behind her long red bangs.

*"Can't a girl worry about her partner?"* she asked slyly.

*"You literally threw me off of the Statue of Liberty last time we saw each other."* he stated flatly as the girls behind him looked at one another in confusion.

*"Yeah I did, but-"*

*"The time before that was the Empire State Building."* he deadpanned.

*"You had that one coming."*

*"You tripped me when we were on the edge of the Macy's sign."*

*"JERK YOU CAN FUCKING FLY!"* she shouted before coving her mouth with one hand and looking to her left quickly. He raised his brow at her actions before letting out a slow sigh.

*"Jackal is there I assume."* he stated around a poorly held back groan. She nodded and closed her eyes as she let out a slow breath.

*"You may not like him but at least he didn't move across the freaking globe."* she added after a moment of tense silence between them.

*"I'm glad you still have a partner Viper. I'm sorry I left but I have family issues to sort out."* he stated softly. She nodded before making a small surprised o with her mouth and resting her finger on her chin as it slipped into a smile.

*"Here I thought my little birdie was Chinese or something and it turns out he's French."* she chuckled gently.

*"I'm kinda both."* he didn't hide the goofy grin on his face as the second of the dark clad heroes of New York made his presence known behind her, *"I am a two in one kinda guy. Always ready to sweep you off your feet."* he shot her a wink as he watched the brunette male behind her turn as red as her hair.

*"Shut the hell up!"* he chuckled as he heard Jackal yelling this while his thumb pressed firmly on the hidden button to hang up on them.

"Old friends?" Alya asked as she raised her brow. He turned to look over at her before shrugging his shoulders and settling his face into a firm frown.

"Old life." He answered as he looked down at his hooks and furrowed his eyes at the thought. Marinette, who was no stranger to secret affections, saw the way he had looked at the girl he had called Viper and felt her heart pang for his sake. Her hand found his shoulder and she patted it reassuringly.

"It will be okay, it's not like she's going to forget you." She assured as she gave him her best friendly smile. He looked down at her with a terrified look in his eyes as his brows shot upwards towards his messy black hair.

"It's not like- I don't really- uh, I dunno what you're talking about." He pouted as his exclamation turned into a soft mumble and he looked down at the ground. He slid his hooks into their holsters before grabbing his cape and spreading it dramatically. Marinette hadn't noticed before that it was split down the middle and connected directly onto the spine of his outfit, the look it gave off was very reminiscent of the bird he got his name from, "I don't want to talk anymore. Gotta fly." With that he waved his arms downward and shot up into the ever darkening sky.

* * *

He hadn't spoken to them the rest of the night so both girls were quite surprised to see his mess of dark black hair in the crowd at school the next day. They were equally surprised to see that a certain blonde was standing before him with their arms crossed angrily as Crow did his best to smile in a friendly way at them. Marinette felt her cheeks warm at the sight of the two of them. Clearly the blonde was making her new friend uncomfortable but the thought of why had her blushing like a mad woman.

"Yo boys what's up?" It was Alya who called attention to the two of them in the end. Marinette felt her heart skip a beat as Adriens beautiful green eyes locked onto hers before he flashed her a bright smile that warmed her all the way down to her toes.

_God she loved him._

"Hi." She gave Adrien a small wave, ignoring Crow who was being crushed in one of Alyas one armed hugs. Marinette was too busy being lost in her boyfriends eyes after so long apart to even notice the whispered conversation between the two or the devious look on Crows face as he eyed the blonde.

"They are a thing." Alya stated as she rested her elbow on Crows shoulder.

"It looks like she's a bit more into the thing than he is." Crow shrugged as he stuffed his hands into his pockets. He felt his smirk pull into a full on grin when the blonde moved closer to the girl in question shortly after he whispered the words. The two shared a devious look before it was cut short by yet another voice.

"Babe are you seriously hanging on another man over there, you're breaking my heart!" Nino exclaimed as he rushed forward frantically at Alya.

"Never honey!" Alya exclaimed as she leapt into the DJs waiting arms.

"Now that's how you mutually couple." Crow chuckled as he crossed his arms and shot Adrien a playful wink. Adrien turned pink at his words and wrapped one arm around Marinette who squeaked and jumped in response to the sudden contact. He continued to chuckle as he walked past them towards his classroom. It was empty, which was a very good sign. He made his way up to a desk in the back and claimed a seat there before stuffing his hands in his coat pockets and propping his feet on the seat of the desk ahead of him. He knew from earlier that he shared homeroom with the girls but in the classroom he liked to be less obvious to people around him. Marinette had explained they sat in the second row of seats and that he could sit one row behind them with their friend Ivan, but honestly he preferred the back, especially if it was close to an exit like this classrooms back desk was.

"Excuse me but, that's my seat." He glanced up at who the soft shy voice that interrupted his thoughts had come from and his heart nearly stopped in his chest. Beautiful deep red hair hung before sky blue eyes that were surrounded by lovely long dark eyelashes. He felt himself take in a shaky breath as he watched those eyes look down shyly away from his face.

*" _oh damn._ "* he whispered to himself as he felt his cheeks warming, " _I-I heh_ , I mean uh, s-sorry I'm from America um, eh-what did you say?" He asked quickly in sloppy French. He rested his cheek on one hand as his elbow hit the table but the fabric slid causing his head to tip forward. He shot up straight in his seat then and clasped his hands together, hoping that the lovely red head had not noticed his fumble.

"Y-your in my seat?" It sounded more like a question than a statement.

"Shit, sorry." He felt like someone could fry an egg on his cheeks at this point as he slid over for the red head to sit beside him, "oh I'm Cain, er, you can call me Crow though. I'm new, the new kid, in your class um." He groaned and his his face behind one hand as he looked away from his new desk companion, "sorry about babbling, I'm usually not like this." He added softly without looking at them.

"It's okay. It's your first day here and all the way from another country. You must just be nervous. Maybe a friend could help. I'm Nathaniel, I can help you with your first day jitters." He turned to take the hand offered to him and shook it slowly.

"F-first day jitters. Yeah, that's what it is." He chuckled nervously as he felt his kwami snicker inside his coat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dialogue surrounded by *" "* is in english in this story while the rest is meant to be in french. Since I write the story in english I had to have a way to differentiate the two languages. I know I focused on the new OC this chapter but I needed a bit of build up for him in later chapters. I am sorry if this upsets anyone and I actually did have a version of this chapter where he just appeared in the classroom one day and didn't gove him a lot of backstory. I liked this version better but if anyone wants to see the other version let me know. I am sorry for my absence but like I said I had multiple versions of this chapter written and had to figure out which one I wanted to present to you all.
> 
> I hope that you all will continue to enjoy this story in the future,
> 
> Much Love;
> 
> AD


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